


Secrets

by magical-illusion13 (coldnightairinmylungs)



Series: Secrets - Promises - Expectations [1]
Category: Karlie Kloss - Fandom, Kaylor - Fandom, Taylor Swift (Musician)
Genre: Alternate Universe, F/F, Magical Realism
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-26
Updated: 2018-03-17
Packaged: 2019-03-09 18:27:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 30
Words: 69,994
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13487202
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/coldnightairinmylungs/pseuds/magical-illusion13
Summary: When Karlie and her sisters attend Taylor's concert, an almost-accident on stage unexpectedly brings their worlds together. The Kloss sisters would have never thought they have a secret in common with the pop star. Over time, Karlie and Taylor find themselves having yet another secret they need to keep ...





	1. One

Karlie and her two younger sisters were singing along to the song that was playing in their car, windows down and laughing as they pulled into the parking lot of the venue. Today was the day.

“Noo, why?” Kimby complained as Karlie turned down the volume a little.

“I’m trying to find a parking spot, could you maybe help looking for one?” the older sister defended herself.

“What, and you can’t see when the music is loud?” Kimby retorted, but did as she was told.

Karlie just rolled her eyes in response.

“Over there, Karlie!” Kariann said and pointed towards an empty parking lot.

“Thank you, well spotted!”

The sisters were surprised how many people had already arrived at Scottrade Center; the show wasn’t going to start until two hours later. But then again, there was really nothing to be surprised about. This was a Taylor Swift concert, after all, and the singer always drew huge crowds and had a very dedicated fan base, most of them young women such as themselves. This would be their very first Taylor Swift concert, and the sisters had saved up for it for months. They had managed to get decent seats not completely at the back of the stadium.

They locked the car and made their way towards the entrance to join the other fans that were already queuing. The air was warm and there was not a single cloud in the sky, a pleasant mid-western summer afternoon.

Karlie laughed as she saw how some younger girls were dressed up in outfits from Taylor’s music videos. Another group of girls carried signs with the singer’s latest album title, Red, in blinking lights. Seeing their excitement made her even more excited, if that was possible at all.

Kimby grabbed her twin sister’s shoulder and jumped up and down.

“I’m so excited! This is really happening! Today is already unforgettable!”

Kariann just laughed and shoved her sister off herself, too used to her antics.

They stood at the end of the line, anticipating the big event.

 

***

 

“Thank you St Louis, you have been wonderful! Thank you for being an amazing audience. This is going to be my last song!”

The crowd erupted in cheers and screams.

Karlie looked around from where she was standing in front of her seat, looked out at the thousands of people that filled the room, and then looked towards the singer on the huge stage again. This concert had gone by way too quickly. She would not complain if it lasted a few hours more, despite the already long set list and breath-taking show.

Taylor Swift had really outdone herself again, Karlie thought, she had loved every performance and every outfit. And the surprise guests! Karlie had thought she was dreaming when “Closer” started playing, a song she had been listening to on repeat since its release, and Tegan and Sara had walked out on stage, looking tiny next to the tall superstar. Karlie hadn’t even known that Taylor knew them or liked their music, but now that she knew she did it made her appreciate her even more.

Kimby caught her sister’s look and smiled, to which Karlie smiled back her signature smile, bright and big and contagious. She briefly squeezed her sister’s shoulder, then turned towards the stage again where the song “We are never ever getting back together” had started playing.

She laughed at the dancers’ outfits, who were dressed as clowns, ballerinas, bunnies … they looked like a funny bunch. Taylor’s outfit was cute, funny and hot at the same time, Karlie thought. The singer was wearing a red glittery swallow-tailed coat with long sleeves, and high-waist black shorts. Her long blonde hair was down. The outfit was completed by a huge black glittery top hat, a black neckerchief and black heels, and of course her red sparkling microphone. _So Taylor_ , Karlie thought. She let herself get lost in her thoughts for a moment, enjoying the last song of the night.

Then suddenly, everything seemed to happen all at once, and in slow motion – Karlie didn’t know which. Later she had trouble properly recalling the moment at all. It felt like time had been stopped for a moment, then fast-forwarded to keep up with the rest of the universe.

Kimby could see what was going to happen a few moments before it did. Taylor was in the middle of performing the song as she walked down the few steps at the center of the stage, miscalculated the width of the second to last step and slipped on the stairs in her high heels with her left foot first. Her ankle got twisted and she fell down the stairs, landing ruggedly on her right knee.

Kariann read her twin sister’s thoughts, and in a split second they both reacted simultaneously. They kept their eyes focused on Taylor, blending out the noise of the stadium full of people around them. Thoughts completely focused on the singer, they used all their willpower and emotions to create an energy that conveyed from them towards her. When Taylor reached the second to last step and was about to slip, their combined force lifted the singer about an inch above the steps.

Taylor’s eyes went wide, her mouth agape as she perplexedly looked into the general direction of the twins, not knowing what was happening but sensing their force. Yet, she did not panic and instead felt oddly at peace in that moment, feeling the good-willed nature of the energy around her deep in her chest. She closed her eyes, and before she knew it, she was lifted down the last step and landed safely at the bottom of the stairs again.

The moment was over.

The twins simultaneously closed their eyes and rubbed their temples, heads aching from the effort.

Time started moving again and while there were a million thoughts running through Taylor’s head and the energy lingered in her body, the performance on stage was still in full swing. None of the dancers or background singers seemed to have noticed anything. She quickly recovered and started singing the song where she had left off.

She was glad that it was the last song because she suddenly couldn’t get off the stage fast enough, feeling the need to be alone and process what had just happened – not the fact that she had almost fallen on stage and most likely would have twisted her ankle, but rather the fact that it _hadn’t_ happened and that she had sensed someone’s presence and force that had spared her from the accident.

Before she knew it, the song had ended and Taylor had left the stage. Karlie still stood there motionlessly, dazed by the shift in the flow of time and space. Then she suddenly snapped out of it, now feeling hyper-aware of her surroundings, and turned towards the twins. She saw them still standing there, hands on their foreheads.

“Whatever just happened, it was you, wasn’t it?” she hissed.

The twins turned towards her as well now. Karlie noticed how tired they looked.

“Yeah …” Kariann said, not looking her older sister in the eyes.

People around them started leaving, but the three young women did not move away from their spots. Karlie plumped down into her seat, lifting her purse from under the seat onto her lap.

The twins remained standing. Kimby looked around to make sure no one was in ear-shot, then she spoke.

“I could see it happen. Taylor almost fell down the stairs. It was … it was an instinct. What would you have done, Karlie? Let her get hurt?”

“You know very well what the rules are, Kimby” her older sister said, staring at her.

“But it happened, so now we just have to hope no one else noticed” she concluded, sounding defeated.

Kimby nodded.

“I bet she didn’t even register what happened, she probably just blacked out for that split second there.”

“Oh, I don’t think so” her twin said.

“My gut feeling tells me she was able to sense our presence.”

“We will see” Kimby responded.

“I hardly think that an international pop star like her is acquainted with any of our hocus-pocus stuff.”

Kimby was wrong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading. This is my new multi-chapter fic. Please feel free to comment, I always appreciate feedback.  
> This story is loosely inspired by the book series T*Witches.


	2. Two

At the backstage area, Taylor started frantically looking for her mom.

“I believe she is in the lounge room”, one of the stage tech guys told her in passing.

She could hear one of the stylists calling after her to take off the costume and change into more comfortable clothes, but she ignored her and quickly made her way towards the lounge room.

When she opened the door and saw her mom, she approached her and immediately started crying.

“Oh God, honey what’s wrong? Did the show not go well?” Andrea asked concerned and pulled her daughter into a hug.

Taylor’s stylist had followed her into the room. When Taylor didn’t respond, the woman answered in her stead.

“At the end of the set there was a weird moment. I was watching from side stage, waiting for Taylor to come off the stage. You nearly fell down those stairs, Taylor, didn’t you?” she inquired towards the singer.

“Yeah …” her response could be heard as a muffled sound.

“But you didn’t get hurt?” Andrea asked.

Taylor pulled away from the hug and wiped at her eyes, not caring that she was still wearing make-up.

“No, mom. I didn’t get hurt. But there was something else.”

Her stylist and her mom both looked at her, puzzled.

“What do you mean?”

Taylor shifted her eyes away from them and let them wander across the room.

“I’m going to take a shower now. Can you take care of the fans before Club Red and tell them I will be there a few minutes later? I need to be alone for a little right now.”

She paused, then looked at the two women.

“Oh, and mom, I know you already picked out the fans but can I ask you a favor? I want to meet two more people. I don’t know their names, but I believe they are two young women, possibly twins. They were probably seated in section C.”

Her mom looked at her like she was insane.

“Taylor … 90% of your audience is young women. And what do you mean you don’t know them? You usually know exactly who you want to meet and where they’re seated.”

The stylist looked at Taylor expectantly. She was not used to Taylor doing something that had not been planned and talked about before.

“I’m sorry mom, that’s all I know. But I promise it’s important. I need to meet them.”

“If you say so …”

Taylor started walking towards the door. With her hand already on the knob, she turned back to her mother.

“I will tell you everything later, but … _Code Black Cat_.”

Then she quickly left the room.

 

***

 

Andrea passed through the backstage area and went out into the lobby, where fans were gathering. She let her eyes roam over the crowd. She saw people lining up at the two merch tables, and people standing in groups together, still full of energy and excitement after the show. _Impossible to find people here that you don’t know_ , she thought to herself.

She tried to make her way towards the entry to section C, where Taylor had told her the girls had probably been seated.

_Code Black Cat_.

She had been shocked to hear her daughter utter these words. After all, they had only ever used them once, and that was when Taylor was in Junior high school.

Andrea felt the adrenaline pumping through her body and her thoughts racing. What could have possibly happened? The part of the show that she had seen, Taylor had been completely fine, performing her songs as perfectly as ever. The stylist had said something about her almost falling on stage? And now she was supposed to look for two girls Taylor didn’t even know herself?

She reached section C and quickly scanned the area. There were still a few people hanging around, but none which matched Taylor’s description. A father and his teenage daughter. A young man and woman probably around 30. She left again and went back to the lobby, where she stood around helplessly. She wanted to fulfill her daughter’s request by all means. She knew Taylor would not have requested it had it been a trivial matter.

A teenage girl with fairy wings on her back and glitter in her face approached her, her mother in tow.

“Andrea! I loved the concert! Can we please take a photo together?”

Andrea smiled and complied with the girl’s wish. She could never say no to the young people who supported her daughter.

When the girl and her mother were gone, she continued her search.

After a few minutes she suddenly made eye contact with a tall woman, whose eyes widened when she recognized her as Taylor’s mother and then hastily whispered something towards the two others standing next to her.

Andrea almost shrugged it off, when she could feel three pairs of eyes staring at her. She looked at them again and saw the tall, brunette woman standing there with two slightly smaller, blonde girls, probably teenagers. They fit Taylor’s description. Something in her gut told her she had found them.

The girls’ eyes widened in shock when they realized she was approaching them.

“Hello, nice to meet you. I am Andrea, Taylor’s mother” she introduced herself.

The tallest one regained her composure the fastest.

“I … yeah … we know. Nice to meet you too. We had a good time at the show.”

Andrea smiled at them.

“Taylor would like to meet you at Club Red in twenty minutes, is that alright with you?”


	3. Three

Karlie could feel the people around them staring at her and her sisters as Andrea led them towards the backstage area where Club Red was located.

She nervously kept rubbing her sweaty palms on her shirt, thoughts running a mile a minute. She silently prayed that it was just a coincidence, that Andrea had picked them randomly, but the way she had looked at and approached them so determinedly made her wonder. But how could she know? Sure, the twins had used their force, but how could anyone besides them and her know how it was connected to Taylor’s almost-accident on stage? There was nothing she could do besides see how it would all work out.

She took her phone out of her purse to send her mother a text that they would be home later than expected, but that they were fine and were having a good time. Behind her the twins walked in silence, but Karlie knew that they were communicating without words, freaking out just as much as she was. This was one of those times where she wished she could jump into their silent conversations.

They arrived in front of a door with two security guards. Loud chatter could be heard from the room behind it.

“Wait here” Andrea instructed them and went into the room, giving the guards a nod.

The sisters stood there in silence, but glanced around themselves and towards the door nervously.

After a few minutes Andrea emerged and led them into the room.

Inside there were around 20 people, most of them standing together in small groups, talking, laughing and sipping drinks from plastic cups. There was a big, bright red couch on one side of the room and a bar with water and juice bottles at the other side. Above it hung a giant poster of the Red album cover. Two girls who stood near them looked at them curiously, but most people didn’t seem to take notice of them, too engrossed in their conversations.

Suddenly Karlie noticed that in one of the groups it was Taylor standing there, talking to her fans. She nudged the twins and nodded her chin in Taylor’s direction. The twin’s eyes went wide, and when Andrea saw that the sisters had noticed Taylor, she started laughing.

“Yeah, she’s really here. Did you think I was pulling a prank on you?”

Karlie laughed too, but it didn’t make her nervousness go away.

“Feel free to help yourself to some drinks at the bar. They’re all non-alcoholic, obviously” Andrea said.

“Taylor will meet you as the last group. Please wait until she approaches you.”

The sisters nodded, and Andrea left the room again.

 

***

 

After what felt like hours but could not have been more than 15 minutes, the last remaining group of fans left Club Red and Taylor came over to where the three sisters were standing.

The singer had changed from her stage outfit into comfortable-looking blue jeans and a simple black t-shirt. Her make-up was off and she was only wearing light mascara. She seemed to have taken a shower after the show because her hair was in its natural curls and pulled into a messy ponytail.

Karlie could feel her heart beating in her chest. Her palms were sweaty and she thought she would pass out from how nervous she was. Taylor was even more stunning in person than in pictures and videos, she thought. She could not tear her eyes away from the singer. Before she knew it, Taylor stood in front of her with her right hand outstretched.

“Hi, I’m Taylor.”

Kariann gave Karlie’s shoulder a light shove, which pulled the girl out of her trance and she shook Taylor’s hand.

“Hi. My name is Karlie. Karlie Kloss. Nice to meet you. Umm, your mom said we should come here and –“

Before she could keep rambling, Taylor smiled and let go of her hand.

“It’s nice to meet you too, Karlie. Thank you for coming to the show.”

Then she turned towards the twins.

The usually loud, confident and out-going Kimby stood there awkwardly, looking at Taylor. Then she shook her hand. Kariann did the same. No one said anything and an awkward tension lingered between the four women.

“So what are your names?” Taylor finally asked.

“Oh. Kimby. Kimberly. Please call me Kimby.”

“Kariann.”

“Well, it’s nice to meet you two, too. Are you guys sisters?”

Kimby still hadn’t regained her composure and just nodded in response, uncharacteristically shy and reserved around the singer.

“We’re twins” Kariann managed to explain, gesturing between herself and Kimby.

“Karlie is our older sister. We have another sister but she’s not here.”

Taylor smiled in response.

Karlie was desperate to resolve the awkwardness and did what she could do best: ramble on.

“Taylor, your show was amazing. It was our first concert of you and we absolutely loved it. I didn’t even know you listened to Tegan and Sara and when they came on stage I was so surprised! And the acoustic version of “All too well” was incredible as well! Like every performance! And the red glittery microphone-“

Taylor laughed at the girl’s dorky rambling. She found it endearing.

“Thank you so much. I’m happy you liked it.”

She had noticed before, but now that we was talking to her standing in front of her she noticed just how tall the girl was. Taylor was not used to looking up when talking to others, especially women. She briefly wondered if the girl was a model. She had a very athletic, slim figure. She was wearing ripped black knee-length jeans, white sneakers and a simple white t-shirt. The only accessory seemed to be a necklace with the letter K on it. _Maybe her name is spelled with K and not C_ , Taylor supposed. The girl made the simple outfit look elegant and she did not look at all like she had just spent hours in a stuffy stadium with thousands of people.

What stroke Taylor most, however, were her bright green eyes. The first time they had made eye contact earlier she had found it hard to look away. To make things worse, the girl also had a beautiful face, with defined cheekbones and a freckle on her right cheek. Her brunette, chin-length hair perfectly framed her face.

_Damn, she’s beautiful_ , Taylor thought to herself. She hoped she hadn’t been staring for too long.

Suddenly she remembered why she had invited the sisters here in the first place. She really hoped her mom had picked the right people. _How am I supposed to start this conversation_ , she thought. She decided to just dive right in.

“Almost had a little accident there on stage, during the last song. Don’t know if you noticed, but I almost fell down those stairs in the middle of the stage. That would have been embarrassing, and probably hurt a lot” Taylor laughed drily and looked at the sisters to gauge their reactions.

The tension was there again, or maybe it had never dissolved in the first place. It was there, except now ten times stronger after Taylor’s last utterance. Taylor could read the anxiousness in the twins’ faces, and Karlie looked like she wanted to be swallowed by a black hole right there on the spot.

“Ummm ….”

That was Kimby. She was still tense in front of the singer. Karlie supposed that the twins were probably screaming at each other inside their heads, willing the other one to talk.

“Yeah” Kariann stated.

“We kind of saw that.”

Karlie’s eyes went wide. _This is not how I imagined meeting my favorite musician,_ she thought.

Taylor seemed unfazed. But unbeknownst to Karlie and Kimby, she was freaking out in her head as well. Only Kariann seemed to get what the singer wanted to talk about.

That’s when it dawned on Karlie that Kariann had been right before when she had said she had felt like Taylor had sensed their presence. This wasn’t a coincidence. They were here because Taylor knew exactly what had happened, simple as that. Kariann, usually the quiet one of the twins, would not be so sure of herself otherwise and even speak instead of Kimby.

_Taylor knows_ , Kariann thought, silently communicating with her twin. _I can hear her thoughts loud and clear now that she is standing in front of us with no one else around. She’s just as nervous as we are about what happened and doesn’t know how to address it._

_Well, damn,_ Kimby responded.

_We got this_ , Kariann returned.

Neither of them said anything. The silence was deafening and the tension almost tangible.

The three sisters looked at Taylor, who refrained from making eye contact with any of them and instead looked down at her shoes. Her fingers nervously tapped against her thighs.

“It was you, wasn’t it” she whispered, so quietly it would have been inaudible had there been other people around. But in the deafening silence of the room, the sisters felt like the singer had shouted the words at them.

It was Kimby who spoke next.

“Yes. It was us. I couldn’t … we didn’t want you to get hurt. I’m sorry. It was against the rules. We know. But I’ve never liked those rules. But I do understand if you’d rather we hadn’t interfered. I hope we didn’t get you in trouble.”

Taylor looked up at them.

“I’m not mad. I was just shocked. I clearly felt your presence and your determination to not let the accident happen. It would have hurt and I wouldn’t have been able to finish the tour, but it wouldn’t have been the end of the world. Nevertheless, thank you for caring enough to prevent the accident. I just … I just hope no one else noticed.”

Karlie just stood there, mouth agape, she couldn’t believe what was happening.

“Did you tell your mother? Is that why she found us in the lobby?” she asked.

Taylor turned towards the taller woman.

“I haven’t told her everything yet, just that A Thing happened on stage, and we were lucky that she found you.”

“But Taylor …” Kariann started.

“How … are you … do you …?”

Taylor grinned, fully knowing what the girl was trying to ask.

Instead of responding, she turned around towards the couch on the other side of the room and focused her eyes on the piece of furniture.

Karlie held her breath.

One of the red pillows that was lying on the couch started moving upwards until it was hovering about a foot above the couch. It lingered in the air for a second, then dropped down onto the couch again with a soft sound.

Taylor turned around again and laughed at the sisters’ shocked facial expressions.

“Oh come on, now don’t act like you’ve never seen anyone do this before. No one else is here. Did that answer your question?” she smirked.

“Holy shit” Kimby whispered.

“The Taylor Swift is one of us.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! I already have the next chapters written and am having a lot of fun writing.  
> I'm also cross-posting this fic to Wattpad.


	4. Four

The next day Karlie woke up from loud music blasting through the house. For a second she was disoriented, then she remembered that she was in her childhood bedroom at her parents’ house. The events from last night came rushing back into her head. She groaned and shoved her face back into her pillow. But it was of no use, she would not be able to fall asleep anymore. Besides, she realized how hungry she was. She hadn’t eaten since before the concert the day before, as they had gotten back home late.

She reached for her phone on the night stand. The display showed 10 am and unread messages from some of her friends. Probably asking her how the concert had been and if she was still alive. She had been bothering her friends with the concert for _months_ (not to mention with her love for Taylor and her music for _years_ ) but then had not texted them even one line after the show.

Karlie sighed. How was she supposed to explain all of this to them when they weren’t allowed to know about her younger sisters’ skills? She would just have to say they had gotten picked randomly to get into Club Red, hoping it was believable.

But she would get back to her friends later, she decided as she made her way down the stairs into the kitchen. It was a Saturday and both her parents were home.

“Morning” she greeted as she walked into the kitchen, where her mother was sitting on a bar stool at the island, reading the newspaper and drinking what was most likely her second or third cup of coffee already.

“Good morning, sweetheart” her mother replied.

“I’m glad to see you’re finally up. You got home late last night.”

“Yeah, about that …” Karlie trailed off.

The twins were in the living room, blasting “Holy ground” and singing along. It sounded horrible.

“How do these two have all this energy left?” she asked towards her mother.

The woman giggled.

“They’ve been like this all morning. They’ve been talking about how the three of you got to meet Taylor? Is that true? I found it hard to believe at first, you never know what kind of stories these two come up with. I thought you had simply still hung out after the show when I read your text last night.”

Karlie laughed.

“It is true. We indeed got to meet Taylor.”

Her mother looked at her surprised. She put the newspaper down and got up towards the sink to fill a glass with water.

“Really? How does that work? Do you not usually have to buy special tickets for a meet and greet?”

“It’s different with Taylor. She looks at social media of fans who will be at her shows, and her mom goes around the stadium picking out people who seem to be having extra fun or have extraordinary costumes” Karlie explained.

She went to the fridge to pour herself a glass of orange juice, then leaned against the counter.

“And her mom approached us when we were standing in the lobby after the show and asked us to come to Club Red, that’s what the meet and greet is called and-“

“Wait you went with a stranger? How did you know it was Taylor Swift’s mom? Anyone could say that!” her mother exclaimed.

Karlie laughed.

“Calm down, mom. The fans know her mom, she appears in Taylor’s videos and photos on social media all the time.”

Her mother still looked doubtful, but accepted the explanation.

“So you were lucky? She picked you out randomly?”

Karlie averted her eyes from her mother, suddenly very interested in her half-empty glass of orange juice. She wanted to say yes, they had been just lucky, and to not make her mother worry. But she was not a good liar, and she didn’t want to lie to her mother who had never given her a reason to do so. Her mother had always raised her four daughters to be honest and to openly communicate with each other and everyone else.

“Karlie …” her mother warned, sensing that this was not the entire story.

Just then, the twins came stumbling into the kitchen.

“Morning Karlie, sleepyhead! You just missed the after-party!”

They stopped in their tracks when they realized that they had walked into an awkward situation.

Karlie spoke up.

“Why don’t you tell mom what happened last night and why we got invited to Club Red? I’ll have my breakfast in the meantime.”

“Ugghh …” Kimby started, but their mother wasn’t having it.

“Tell me what happened! Is it serious? Did you get in trouble?”

The twins each pulled out a bar stool from under the kitchen island and sat down opposite to their mother and Karlie, who had started preparing herself a bowl of cereal with almond milk and a banana. They looked defeated, and started telling their mother about the almost-accident from the night before, knowing they couldn’t lie to her anyways.

Their mom listened carefully, but couldn’t hide her slight anger towards the twins for acting so carelessly. Nevertheless she too was astonished that someone as famous as Taylor Swift was a conjurer, like her twin daughters and her late mother.

At the end of their meeting with Taylor they had exchanged contact information, the sisters had each given her their phone numbers and e-mail addresses and in return had gotten an e-mail address from Taylor’s management with an instruction on which subject heading to use so their e-mail could be forwarded to Taylor’s private account. Just in case they needed to further exchange information about the incident - they all still hoped nobody had paid attention, though. On the ride back home Kimby had been especially giddy over the fact that Taylor Swift now had her phone number, no matter how many times Karlie had told her to stop making light of the situation.

After their conversation, their mom looked at the girls with a serious expression on her face.

“Let’s hope it doesn’t have any further consequences. Maybe we should report the incident to the CA of Missouri as a precaution. You broke a rule, after all.”

The three sisters just nodded in response.

“And you will tell this story to your father today as well when he comes back inside later.” Their dad liked to do gardening work in his free time, such as this late Saturday morning. They could see him working through the kitchen window, with the family dog Joe running around the small garden, enjoying the warm and sunny weather.

They agreed.

“I will text Kristine, too. She already texted me asking about the show, but I haven’t replied yet” Kariann stated.

Kristine was their oldest sister, who lived in Chicago. The four sisters never kept any secrets from each other, and so they felt the need to tell her as well. As their older sisters, Karlie and Kristine were both constantly worried about the twins, especially because they didn’t possess any conjuring skills like them. As close family members who were allowed to know about their skills, all they could do was provide guidance and teach them responsibility.

“Good idea”, Karlie said.

The twins left the kitchen to go to their respective rooms.

Karlie put the dirty dishes in the sink and was about to leave the room as well, when her mother spoke up again.

“When are you going to leave tomorrow, Karlie?”

“In the morning, the plane leaves at 9. Dad already agreed to take me to the airport. Summer sessions start on Monday and I still need to prepare a little, and also prepare for tutoring next week” Karlie responded.

“Alright.”

Karlie knew that her mom was sad she couldn’t stay longer. It had been two years since she had moved out to go to college in New York, and even longer since her older sister had left St Louis to live with her boyfriend. After this summer, the twins would be going to college as well, and her parents would be alone in the house, with only their dog left. Karlie missed her dog when she was away too. Nonetheless she would never think to move back to her hometown after college, she had gotten too used to the big city and the freedom that came with it. Outside of the holidays, weekend trips to her hometown would have to do to see her family.

Karlie smiled at her mom and went back upstairs to her room to finally reply to her friends.

When she picked up her phone from her bed where she had left it and saw the text from her college friend Cara, her heart started beating wildly in her chest. _Please don’t let it be what I think it is_ , she prayed silently. Cara had sent a link to a YouTube video, seemingly taken at the concert last night and newly uploaded.

 

**Cara**                                                                                                                                                                                      

Bloody hell Karlie, are you still asleep? Reply to meeeeee !!!

_10:27 am_

 

lmao look at this video I found on youtube from the show last night, whatever happened to Taylor during that last song? Am I tripping or did she hover down those stairs? The comments are WILD !!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0z-yjeJixFg

_10:31 am_


	5. Five

Taylor and her family were sitting at the big dining room table, enjoying their Sunday morning breakfast together. It was a rare occasion to have them all together like this. The night before had been the last show of the American leg of the Red tour. Taylor had chosen Nashville for it so her family could attend more easily and so she could spend some time at her parents’ house afterwards to relax. She was also happy to see her cat Meredith again, the pet had stayed with her parents for the past weeks.

Her younger brother was currently trying to convince her to go outside later and enjoy the warm weather.

“Please? We can go explore the Mossy Ridge Trail! I haven’t been in forever! I don’t think we’ve ever been there together.”

“Austin, I’d love to, but not today. I’m exhausted and I just want to relax. We can hang out in the backyard” Taylor reminded him and took a sip of her coffee.

“Ugh, gross, it’s gone cold. Have we been sitting here that long?”

She got up from the table to go into the kitchen and get another cup of coffee.

“Anyone want anything?”

“No thanks, we’re good” her father replied.

Just then, Taylor’s phone rang from where it was lying on the living room couch.

“Your phone, Taylor!” Austin shouted when Taylor made no move to go and answer it.

“Nah, tour’s over, I have today and next week off, they can just text me” she shouted back from the kitchen.

When she came back into the dining room with a cup of fresh coffee a minute later, her phone started ringing again.

Three pairs of eyes stared at her, the rest of her family annoyed from the sound of her standard ringtone. Even Meredith meowed in Taylor’s direction from where she was sitting on the couch.

“I don’t want to”, Taylor reiterated.

 Everyone let out a sigh of relief when the phone finally stopped ringing and kept eating their meals.

“See, couldn’t have been that important.”

That’s when the house phone started ringing from where it was lying on the kitchen counter in the next room.

Taylor closed her eyes in annoyance and took a deep breath.

“What the …”

Her father started towards the kitchen to pick up.

He came back, the phone outstretched in his hand towards his daughter.

“It’s Tree.”

 

***

 

Karlie rang the doorbell at her neighbor’s apartment and heard footsteps approaching the door quickly soon after.

The door opened, and she was immediately wrapped into a hug by the girl.

“Karlie! It’s so good to see you! Did you have a nice weekend? Come in, I have like twenty minutes until I have to leave for work.”

They separated, and Karlie smiled.

“Thank you Jourdan. It’s good to see you too. I’d love to hang out a little. How’s the new job going?”

Karlie went inside and Jourdan closed the door behind her. They went into the small room and plopped down on the couch.

Karlie always felt weird coming here since the apartment looked exactly like hers, except that it was a mirror image. Jourdan’s couch was on the left side of the room, her bed on the right, and the doors towards the small kitchen and bathroom on the left side as well. Karlie’s was the other way round.

“The job is going well! My co-workers and the customers are really friendly, but I still have to learn a lot. Made a mess yesterday when I tried to make a milkshake” she laughed.

Karlie laughed too.

“Cara and I will come over during your shift sometime”, she promised.

Jourdan clapped her hands together in excitement.

“You better leave me a generous tip then”, she joked.

Karlie grinned in response.

She was happy to have someone like Jourdan as her neighbor. She had heard terrible stories about college roommates and student housing, but she had nothing to complain about. Jourdan and she had become friends almost instantly, even though they studied different subjects and had completely different personalities. The girl with the long black hair and dark eyes always made Karlie come out of her shell.

“But enough about my mishaps at work, how was the concert?” Jourdan changed the topic.

“It was amazing!” Karlie gushed, eyes shining.

“We got into Club Red!” she exclaimed, but her smile faltered when she saw that Jourdan didn’t seem to share her excitement.

“What’s Club Red?” the girl asked.

“Oh my god, Jourdan! Do you ever listen to me when I talk to you? It’s the meet and greet! We got to meet Taylor!”

Jourdan’s eyes went wide.

“Wow! That’s so awesome! How did that happen?”

Karlie told her all about how Andrea had approached her and her sisters in the lobby of the venue, only leaving out some small details.

Jourdan was astonished, but genuinely happy for her friend.

“So, show me the picture!”

Karlie froze.

“What picture?”

“Oh, didn’t you guys take a picture together? I’m not into this whole fan culture thing but isn’t that what you do at meet and greets? Get CDs signed and take pictures together?” Jourdan asked confused.

Karlie felt her heart beating out of her chest. They had completely forgotten to take a picture with Taylor or have her sign their tickets, all they had thought about was the incident.

Shit.

“We … kind of forgot” she said lamely.

“What?”

“Yeah, we … we were just talking and forgot to take a picture.”

“Ok …” Jourdan said incredulously.

Karlie quickly changed the topic.

“But what was really awesome was that she had Tegan and Sara on stage as a musical guest! I couldn’t believe it!”

“Who’s that?” Jourdan asked.

“Oh Jourdan … how long have you known me now?” Karlie returned defeated.

Jourdan giggled in response.

“Long enough to know that you’re a huge nerd, Karlie.”

“Hey …”

Both girls laughed.

“Alright, not to throw you out, but I kind of have to leave soon and need to change. See you soon?” Jourdan asked as they both got up from the couch and went towards the door.

“Sure!” Karlie said and hugged her friend goodbye.

She went back into her own apartment. Immediately she texted the twins about how they should have taken a picture with Taylor so their meet and greet story didn’t sound completely made up and weird.

Then she sat down at her desk to prepare for the upcoming summer sessions.

 

***

 

About two hours into her study session, Karlie’s phone rang. The sudden sound of the opening notes of “State of grace” gave her a start. She looked at the display. Unknown number. She briefly debated ignoring the call, but then shrugged and answered her phone.

“Hello?”

“Karlie?” a frantic voice asked. The voice sounded familiar, but she couldn’t place it.

“Yes, this is Karlie.”

“It’s Taylor. Swift.”

Karlie almost dropped her phone in shock. She took the phone from her ear and stared at it.

When she didn’t speak, a nervous voice could be heard.

“You know? You met me at Club Red in St Louis and-“

“Yes I know who you are, Taylor. I just …”

“Ok I’m sorry, but we don’t really have time right now. Did you read my e-mail? About the video?”

Karlie winced. _What e-mail?_

“Uggh, no …”

“Yeah I thought so. I sent it around 10 am this morning. I sent it to the twins as well but they didn’t reply, either. Did you already forget about the incident on Friday?” Taylor retorted, sounding hectic and annoyed.

“I think the twins are out and about with their friends today so they don’t check their e-mails. I only got back to New York a few hours ago, and then I hung out with my friend and studied … I’m sorry. I’m opening my e-mail right now” Karlie said, opening the e-mail program in her laptop’s browser.

“What are you doing in New York?” Taylor asked.

She still sounded hectic, but Karlie could hear genuine interest in her voice.

 _Am I really currently having a phone call with Taylor Swift?_ , she thought.

“Oh … I live here. I go to college” she explained.

Her eyes quickly scanned Taylor’s e-mail as she spoke.

“Oh, about that video. My friend sent it to me yesterday” she said.

“What?” Taylor exclaimed, sounding frantic again.

“What-“ Karlie started, but was interrupted.

“Ok, Karlie, I need you to listen to me.”

Taylor took a deep breath at the end of the line.

“I don’t know why you didn’t contact me about the video yesterday, but it doesn’t matter now. You’ve probably seen it, so I don’t need to explain to you what it is about. My publicist called me this morning and said that someone from our team had found the video on YouTube. It only roughly had 1000 views then, but a disproportionate amount of comments. They were from people who claimed to have been at the concert in St Louis and they all said what a weird moment that was, when I almost fell down the stairs. They said that they thought it had looked like I was hovering down the stairs, and that there was a weird atmosphere in the stadium when it happened. Do you know what I’m getting at?”

Karlie sighed in response.

“But it’s just a video, with not even that many views. It could be fake to people who weren’t at the show and-“

Taylor interrupted her again.

“And then, just about twenty minutes ago, my publicist called me again. There’s an article on Buzzfeed about the incident now, and people on social media are speculating if the video is fake or not, and what could have happened. The video now has more than 15.000 views, and it’s getting more.”

“Oh …” was all Karlie could say.

“Exactly. We had hoped no one would notice, but people did. And I don’t want this thing to get blown out of proportion. It was just a stupid little almost-accident, but it happened in front of cameras and thousands of people, and we don’t want the public to speculate about what really happened. I don’t know much about all of this stuff, but even I know that conjuring skills have to be kept hidden by all means, and that the CA is all about being secretive” Taylor continued.

“Yeah, that’s true” Karlie replied.

“I don’t have any skills myself, but as the twins’ older sister I’ve always been involved in their studies. It was pretty hard for them growing up.”

“So you understand the situation we’re in. To be honest I’m not even sure if we’re even allowed to have this conversation on our normal phones, but whatever” Taylor laughed drily.

“What I’m trying to say is, we need to fix this. My publicist does not know about any of my skills, so she just thinks it’s an awkward moment of me going down the stairs. I do not plan on telling her the truth, I only hired her at the beginning of the year. Anyways, we need to stop rumors from spreading so that the CA does not become an item of speculation.”

Karlie nodded, when she remembered Taylor couldn’t hear that. But the singer already continued.

“So I contacted my uncle Patrick. He is a conjurer as well and an active member of the CA, unlike me. He knows council members and other important people, and we will meet them as soon as possible. I want you there, and the twins as well obviously. Are you free tomorrow afternoon? I didn’t know you were in NYC, can you come back to St Louis or Nashville?” she asked.

“What!” Karlie gasped.

“I’m sorry, but that’s not possible. I have summer sessions. And I’m a tutor. I only just got back today. I don’t have the money to book a flight again and I have my responsibilities here. Can’t you meet up without me?”

“No, I think it would be better if you were there. The twins are so young. How old are they, anyways?”

“They just turned 18” Karlie responded.

“Exactly” Taylor said.

“Then I guess I will have to come to New York. I have a business meeting there at the beginning of next week, anyways. Though I was gonna hang out with my family in Nashville, but oh well. The twins are free, right, is it their summer holidays?” she asked.

“Yeah” Karlie said.

Before she could ask more, Taylor continued.

“Ok, great. I will text them. I will have someone from my team pick them up and then we can go to New York together with my private plane. That way they won’t have to worry about transportation costs. I will text them as soon as we hang up. And I will text you the details as well later. Tomorrow afternoon, ok?”

Karlie felt overwhelmed.

“Ughh, sure. I should be able to make it, my classes go until 2pm.”

“Perfect” Taylor said.

“It was nice to talk to you, Karlie. Oh, and please don’t give anyone my number, alright? I don’t usually do this but it’s an emergency.”

“Of course” Karlie replied.

“See you tomorrow, then” Taylor said.

“See you tomorrow. Bye.”

As soon as Karlie had uttered the last word, Taylor had hung up.

 _What was that_ , she thought.

Then she had another thought.

 _Mom is gonna freak out_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Please feel free to give feedback! English is not my first language so if you find any major grammar or vocabulary mistakes please do point them out to me!
> 
> I know things are moving slowly, but I promise that a lot of things are going to happen in this story. ;-)
> 
> If you want to, come say hi on tumblr: magical-illusion13.tumblr.com


	6. Six

When Karlie looked at her phone during a break between study sessions at her college on Monday, she saw the text from Taylor with the details when and where they were going to meet that afternoon, just as the singer had promised.

Karlie sighed. So they were really going to do this. She replied with the thumbs up emoji. _Here I am, casually texting Taylor Swift_ , she thought and snort-laughed. Her classmate who sat next to her looked at her weirdly, but didn’t say anything.

She texted Cara that she wouldn’t be able to hang out this afternoon as they had originally planned. Instead of a text, Cara called her back immediately. Karlie quickly got up and left the classroom to answer the call in the hallway.

“Bloody hell, Karlie” Cara said instead of a greeting.

Karlie laughed at her British friend’s favorite phrase that the girl overused so much it had lost its original meaning.

“Hello to you too, Cara” she chuckled.

“What is it with you? First you go MIA after the concert, and now you don’t want to hang out with your favorite friend?” Cara insinuated.

“Shut up, Cara. Listen, I have an important thing this afternoon, I’m so sorry to cancel on you. I will make it up to you.”

“And what could this “important thing” be? Are you going on a date?” Cara asked.

Karlie laughed.

“No!”

“Then what? Are you ditching me to hang out with Jourdan? Derek’s on vacation, so it can’t be him. Come on Karlie, who else would you hang out with? You don’t have any other friends.”

“Rude!” Karlie exclaimed, but laughed. She knew that this was just how her friend was, she meant no harm.

“And no, I’m not meeting Jourdan, briefly saw her yesterday, and Derek is indeed on vacation. It’s an important meeting, but I can’t tell you more about it, I’m sorry.”

Karlie hoped that she wouldn’t accidentally spill any secrets. She was a terrible liar.

“Alright. What about Wednesday, then?” Cara asked defeated.

“Sounds good! Can’t wait to see you again!” Karlie replied.

The girls talked for a while more until Karlie saw that her tutor waved to her to come back into the classroom so they could continue. She told Cara goodbye, hung up and went to her seat.

She did her best to focus, but she was already overcome with nervousness about what the rest of the day would bring.

 

***

 

Karlie felt a little lost as she stood before the entrance of the fancy-looking hotel near Times Square. She wasn’t sure if she was at the right place, but this was the address Taylor had given her. No one was there yet. Karlie nervously checked her phone. Great, she was twenty minutes early. She began pacing up and down the sidewalk, between the many people going about their day. Most of them were tourists, and the chatter around her came in all kinds of languages. It made her wish she could speak more than English and the little bit of French she had learned in school. The streets were as busy as ever, cars and cabs causing slow traffic and a never-ending honking of car horns.

After a while, a black SUV pulled up in front of the hotel. Karlie looked at the car but couldn’t see anyone inside through the toned windows. Then the car doors opened, and her jaw dropped to the floor when she saw her younger twin sisters get out on the one side, and Taylor Swift on the other. Taylor really had not been kidding. Kariann must have heard her thoughts, because she turned to where Karlie was standing on the side walk and waved to her, laughing at her older sister’s facial expression.

Karlie went up to them and hugged the twins. Taylor approached her and Karlie could feel herself freaking out again. She was not as star-struck as she had been Friday night, but the singer’s presence still made her nervous. She was scared she would embarrass herself in front of the blonde or that she would think she was stupid.

Karlie and Taylor awkwardly shook hands.

“Hey, nice to see you again” Taylor said with a genuine smile.

Karlie felt butterflies in her stomach.

“It’s nice to see you too. Though I wish it was under less serious circumstances. Thank you for taking care of the twins” Karlie responded and smiled back.

Karlie’s mother had indeed freaked out when the twins had presented her with Taylor’s plan the day before. It took a phone call between her mom and Taylor’s uncle Patrick to assure the woman that the twins would be taken good care of and that the meeting was in their interest too. After all, her mom had already suggested to report the incident to the CA, which was what they were doing now. Her mom had given in. The twins would stay with Karlie until the next day, and Taylor’s management had already booked them a flight back to St Louis. Kariann and Kimby had freaked out no less when they had realized they would be flying with Taylor Swift in her private plane. Karlie couldn’t wait to hear what they would tell her. This was something the twins would never shut up about ever again.

The driver waved at them and drove away to find the hotel’s garage, and the four women as well as one of Taylor’s security guards went inside the lobby. The woman at the reception made wide eyes when she saw Taylor, but quickly regained her composure. When she realized that the four women were just waiting in the lobby and made no move to approach the reception, she quickly busied herself in order to not stare.

A few minutes later a tall, middle-aged man walked in. He approached the group and Taylor’s face lit up when she saw him. She met him halfway and hugged him.

“This is my uncle Patrick” she said when she turned around.

The three sisters waved shyly.

“Hello, girls. It’s good that you’re here. Let’s wait upstairs, shall we.”

He went to the reception and talked to the staff, who handed him a card and explained something.

The man thanked her and waved at the rest of them to come with him to the elevator. Taylor’s security guard trailed behind them without saying anything.

They went up to the 10th floor, where they turned to the left. A bright, empty corridor was before them, with doors on each side.

“So it’s room #1013” Patrick said, looking at the card in his hands.

“Ha! 13!” Taylor exclaimed and did a little fist bump into the air.

Patrick rolled his eyes. The twins snort-laughed. Karlie burst out laughing and then blushed when she saw Taylor smiling at her. Again she felt a little overwhelmed at being at the receiving end of this beautiful smile. The butterflies in her stomach started making their rounds again. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Kariann smirk.

 

Karlie tried not to stare at Taylor as they went down the hallway. She couldn’t help but notice how well her shirt hugged her flawless figure. She was wearing her signature red lipstick. Her long hair was down and straightened. Her heels put her at about Karlie’s height.

Karlie suddenly felt underdressed next to the singer in her usual jeans and t-shirt. Little did she know that Taylor had already admired the brunette’s outfit from the car, when she hadn’t been able to see her, and had been impressed by the taller girl’s simple, but elegant style once more. And she had had trouble looking away from the girl as well, even though she would never admit that.

They found the room; Patrick opened the door with the card and they stepped inside. It was a small conference room, and the lights were a little too bright. It overlooked Times Square.

Taylor’s security guard stayed outside in front of the door, while the others took their seats. The four women chose the chairs near the windows, with Karlie sitting next to the twins, and Taylor on her other side. Patrick sat down at the table head. There were bottles of water at each seat, and Karlie opened hers and took a sip.

Patrick spoke up.

“So now we will wait for the others to show up. We still have a few minutes until 4pm, but these people are not the most punctual ones. Can you girls tell me who you are? Taylor already told me what happened but I don’t know which one of you is which” he laughed good-naturedly.

The girls introduced themselves and the group made small-talk until they heard footsteps coming down the hall and three people entered the room.

 

***

 

The two women and one man sat down on the seats opposite to the girls, near the door that was now closed.

The tall blonde woman spoke up.

“Thank you for coming all the way here so spontaneously. Before we start I think we should all introduce ourselves. I don’t know if you remember me, but the last time I saw you two was when you were around 6 years old” she smiled towards the twins.

The twins both seemed to rack their brains where they knew the woman from, but then smiled apologetically.

“No, I’m sorry, we don’t remember you” Kimby said.

Karlie believed she didn’t know the woman, either.

“Well then let me introduce myself” the blonde woman said towards everyone on the opposite side of the table.

“My name is Beverly Yanez. I am the chairperson of the Conjurers’ Association of Missouri. I have always been an active member of the CA and I used to teach classes to kids with conjuring skills until a few years ago. So that’s where I remember Kimberly and Kariann from.”

The woman’s voice was soft and friendly, but there was an authority in her voice that made one not want to speak back to her. She was wearing formal attire, a black pant-suit, and her long blonde hair was in a perfect ponytail, with no hair sticking out. Her face was naturally pretty and she seemed to not be wearing any make-up.

The small woman beside her spoke next.

“My name is Tomoko Takenaka. It is nice to meet you. I am member of CA Japan. I am on visit to the USA for studies. I am friends with Mrs Yanez who allowed me to attend this meeting. I am very interested in this incident. I hope we have good meeting” she smiled at the twins.

The Japanese woman was wearing formal attire as well, Karlie noticed and felt underdressed for the second time this afternoon. She had shoulder-length black hair and a friendly face.

“I am Mike Edwards” the tall man began introducing himself, his deep voice a stark contrast to the two women who had spoken before him, but nevertheless pleasant and friendly. He had dark skin and short curly black hair that was already gray in some parts, and was wearing suit and tie.

“I am the chairperson of the CA of New York state. I hope we can quickly resolve this matter today” he said determinedly.

Taylor gulped. She had no idea about the structure of the organization, but she assumed the three people sitting across from her were high-ranking personalities. _Better do what I’m told,_ she decided.

It was Patrick’s turn to speak next.

“I’m Patrick Swift, Taylor’s uncle. I’m a member of the CA of Pennsylvania. I am happy to see Mrs Yanez and Mr Edwards again today and happy to meet Mrs Takenaka for the first time” he nodded towards the woman.

Then all eyes turned towards Taylor, who was suddenly nervous. She was sure these people already knew who she was.

“It’s nice to meet you. I’m Taylor. Taylor Swift. I’m sorry for all the inconveniences caused to the CA …” she said, looking at her hands on the table in front of her.

“I’m sure we can find a solution together” Mrs Yanez reassured her.

Taylor looked up and smiled, but Karlie felt like it looked forced compared to the smile she was used to seeing from the singer. She found herself studying her face closely, wishing she could reach out and touch her cheek and make her smile genuinely.

She felt Kariann nudge her side and blushed. All eyes were on her.

“Oh, umm, I’m Karlie, Karlie Kloss. I’m Kimby’s and Kariann’s sister. I possess no conjuring skills, but I was at the concert with them” she said quickly.

She could feel Taylor’s stare on her face but didn’t dare to look back at her.

The twins rescued her.

“I’m Kariann.”

“I’m Kimberly, call me Kimby. Sorry for the mess we made” she laughed drily.

“Which brings us to the reason we’re here” Mrs Yanez said pointedly.

“Miss Swift, may I ask you for a detailed description of the events from Friday night from your point of view?”

Taylor took a deep breath, and then started telling the others how she had experienced the moment.

After the three sisters had summed up their experience from the night – Karlie could only remember the incident itself in a blur, whereas the twins laid it out in every detail – a discussion about whether the twins had acted right or wrong started to grow.

“You should be aware that it was against the rules, you used your skills in front of thousands of people, and the damage that would have occurred without your help – a broken ankle maybe - is disproportionate to the risk you took and the attention towards the incident that resulted from it” Mr Edwards spoke up, anger in his voice.

“I’ve never liked those rules anyways. Why can’t we use our skills more to do good in the world? So many problems could be solved if- “, Kimby started, but was interrupted by Mrs Yanez.

The woman’s previously friendly voice had anger lingering in it as well.

“You know why. Do you think this is not something the CA wonders and talks about regularly? We want to avoid the abuse of those powers and secure the safety of our members. We are only such a small percentage of the population and we cannot risk having our skills exposed to the rest of the world. Use your skills to do good within your small circle, but not in front of non-conjurers and not for your own entertainment and convenience. You know the rules.”

Kimby looked like she wanted to counter something, but just opened and closed her mouth again.

Taylor chimed into the conversation, she had been silent until now unless explicitly prompted to speak.

“I’m sorry for my ignorance, but is there like a document where all the rules are written down? I’ve never really been involved in this stuff except for the mandatory classes as a kid …”

Everyone in the room looked at her, and her uncle looked embarrassed.

“Miss Swift, you should really know all this and I’m sure it was taught in your classes” Mr Edwards said.

He placed both of his hands on the table in front of him, palms facing up, and quietly mumbled something Taylor couldn’t understand.

A small but thick book appeared in his hands. Taylor gasped. _Maybe I should really re-familiarize myself with all of this_ , she thought.

He handed the book towards the singer. It had no title, but in the middle of the old worn-out black cover was a dark blue circle with a C shaped white part on the left side, which Taylor recognized as the association’s logo.

She flipped the book open and looked at the table of contents. The book contained the CA’s rules as well as a members’ list. She hadn’t even known such a thing existed. She curiously flipped towards the pages for the members of the USA and then found her own and Patrick’s name in the S section. The book not only listed her name, but also birthday and –place and the skills she possessed. She was surprised to also find notes about her other family members who did not possess any skills but knew of them, and then the names of already deceased ancestors who seemed to also have possessed some skills.

She looked up.

“I had no idea this existed. This is impressive.”

Mrs Yanez laughed.

“Impressive? Thanks … what do you think we spend all our time doing? We don’t perform magic tricks for each other” she replied sarcastically.

“I’m sorry. I have never been involved in all of this. I can see why that should change. But I always just wanted a normal life. Which is kind of ironic, because all I focused on in my life has been my career, even though I know that the association discourages its members from choosing careers that put them in the public spotlight - now I can feel why. But I’ve already had so much to do with hiding my sexuality since I started in the country music scene, I didn’t bother worrying about the few conjuring skills that I have.”

Karlie swore her heart stopped beating for a second at Taylor’s utterance. She had been hiding her _what_? A million questions went through her head, but all she could do was stare at the singer, once again. The twins seemed just as puzzled by this new piece of information as she was, though out of the corner of her eye she could see Kariann smirking in her direction.

None of the high-ranking CA members seemed fazed by the revelation, though. Mrs Yanez’ face had softened, and she spoke to Taylor again.

“That is very understandable, Miss Swift. It must not be easy being constantly in the spotlight and under so much pressure. I must admit I had no idea you were a member of the CA at all until I received that phone-call yesterday. And we cannot change what happened, so I would be happy if you got more involved in our activities from now on.”

Taylor looked relieved. She took a sip from her water bottle, then spoke again.

“Yes, I would like that, to make up for the trouble I am currently causing you. If … if you need financial support, then that’s not a problem for me. Do you have headquarters anywhere in the world?” she asked.

Mrs Yanez laughed.

“There really is a lot you need to learn still, Miss Swift. No, we do not have headquarters. We are a secret organization, how are we supposed to rent office space? We work from home or rent conference rooms like this one for one or a few days. And we don’t store our documents – as you saw earlier, there is no need for that. We can just make them appear when we need them.”

“Oh …” Taylor said in awe.

Then she turned to the Kloss sisters.

“Did you know all of this?”

“Yeah, we did” Kimby chuckled.

The girl had lost her shyness around the singer during their flight together and was back to being her sassy and confident self.

“This is common knowledge, you know. Unlike you we did not stop going to classes after the age of 12 when they stopped being mandatory. You learn all kinds of stuff there” she grinned.

“Ok, fine, maybe I should have done something else than play guitar all the time” Taylor retorted and rolled her eyes playfully, but smiled at the twins.

“But then you wouldn’t have been able to go to my concert because I would have never become a famous musician and- “, she continued, and everyone laughed.

Seeing Taylor bantering with her sisters made Karlie feel warm in her chest and she briefly wondered if they would be able to stay in contact after this meeting and if they could become friends. They all seemed to get along well.

“Enough, you two” Patrick interrupted.

“So what should we do now?” Mr Edwards brought the conversation back to the matter at hand.

This question sparked yet another discussion, the results of which did not make everyone happy, but neither Taylor nor the twins dared to challenge the chairpersons’ authority anymore.

Taylor reluctantly agreed to make a statement on twitter about the viral video, saying that she had only stumbled down the stairs and there was nothing more to it. They decided to not take the video down and to not give Tree anymore background information on the matter. Furthermore, Taylor would become more involved in the association’s activities and was given a bunch of contact data of important people. The twins were forgiven, but warned to not use their powers in front of other non-conjurers ever again and to not push their boundaries with the authorities of the CA and to respect the rules.

“Actually, Miss Swift, I think you should keep a low profile for a while so as not to draw attention to yourself in the upcoming weeks” Mr Edwards added after a while.

“But- “ Taylor started, but then knew better than to disagree with him.

“Didn’t you say you have time off after your tour now anyways? If you have individual shows booked, fine, but please consider not using social media for a while and to not call paparazzi every time you leave the house.”

Taylor sighed, but agreed.

Karlie was confused for the second time in this meeting. _Call paparazzi? What does that mean?_

“Alright, anything else?” Mrs Yanez asked.

“Ah, yes, I have question” Mrs Takenaka said.

She had been quiet during the entire meeting, only listening to what everyone had to say. She looked at Taylor.

“Miss Swift, I did not understand when you told about after the concert when you told your mother. It is only detail but I would like to understand. What “Code black cat” mean? I have never heard before.”

“Oh” Taylor said and smiled at the woman.

“It’s nothing important. It’s only something we came up with in my family when I was a child if there was ever an emergency regarding my conjuring skills. Luckily before Friday I had only ever used it once before, and that was in Junior high” she chuckled at the memory.

“What happened then?” Kariann asked.

“Oh, it was stupid. I got bullied a lot by this group of guys and one afternoon after school they found me alone at the school yard and wanted to intimidate me. I doubt they wanted to hurt me physically but they surrounded me and I was so stressed and in that moment I really wished I wasn’t there, so I accidentally made myself invisible. The guys were shocked, but I ran away as long as I could hold the invisibility and when I was out of their sight called my mom to pick me up from school. Lucky for me, no one at the school believed them when they told classmates I had become invisible right before their eyes. So the incident didn’t have any other consequences and the bullies left me alone after that” Taylor recalled the incident.

“Thank you for your honest answer” Mrs Takenaka said.

“This is why it is crucial to be in control of your skills” Mr Edwards concluded. There was a slight grin on his face as if he wanted to add something but didn’t.

He then looked at the book that was still lying on the table in front of Taylor. The book started hovering in the air, moved towards him and then landed in his hands with a soft sound. It disappeared a second later.

The meeting ended soon after, and everyone seemed relieved that it was over and had gone relatively well.


	7. Seven

One week later, Taylor found herself in yet another conference room in New York City. She sighed. The meeting had already lasted more than two hours with only a small coffee break, and she had eaten all the snacks she had brought. She was ready for lunch, however the meeting wasn’t done yet.

At least this time she was not the most ill-informed person in the room. They were having a business meeting with people from her team and management about her upcoming schedule and the Australia leg of the tour that she wanted to do sometime next year and that she had to agree to dates and venues that were available.

Tree, who sat on her right, tapped her shoulder.

“What?” Taylor startled.

The red-haired woman next to her sighed.

“What are you day-dreaming about, Taylor? Pay attention. You’ve seemed out of it ever since the incident at your St Louis show, and I still don’t understand what was going on” her publicist said with an accusatory tone in her voice.

“Don’t worry. It’s all good now. Trust me, there won’t be more to it. The debate over it is now contained to the fans and not in the general public anymore. It’s all rumors anyways and we’re not giving them any more information, so they should stop talking about it sooner or later” Taylor assured her.

One of the men responsible for tour organization coughed and the two women looked up.

“Miss Swift, Miss Paine, is there anything more that needs to be discussed about the tour? We would like to stay on topic” he said.

“No, this was about something else. It had just come to our minds” Taylor said sharply.

She didn’t like being interrupted and especially not by someone who worked for her, and not the other way round. She was always kind and understanding towards anyone who worked with her, but she knew that she was the boss and had the last word.

“Yes, Miss Swift. Excuse my interruption” the man replied.

“Anyways” Taylor continued.

“You can make reservations for those venues we talked about, but not book anything yet and I will not announce any more tour dates until the beginning of next year. I know I am expected to keep up with the two-year schedule of putting out a new album, but I haven’t written any new songs yet. I’m going to be doing some appearances for the rest of the year, but not book any new ones.”

Everyone looked at her surprised, but the men and women in the room duly took notes of whichever of Taylor’s plan affected their work.

“Oh, and-” Taylor said and looked at Tree.

“I want the contract with that Chris dude to expire within the next two months. Make sure to tell him that. You can already think of articles to give to the media if they decide to slut-shame me again. Whatever. I’m gonna be single after this.”

Tree just nodded and took notes. Her client did not have the best reputation in the public eye when it came to dating, which was why she had been hired. Taylor needed a better image than the ‘serial-dater’ she was accused of being. Her current contract with the young British actor had already been in effect when Tree had arrived, so now they would let it come to an end and push the ‘happy and single’ narrative. To be honest, Tree didn’t like this part of her job, she wished that Taylor didn’t have to have two types of relationships – a public and a private one. She didn’t know a lot about her client’s personal life since it was none of her business, literally, but she knew that the singer had gone through a break-up earlier this year. She was indeed single, but not happy as far as the publicist could tell.

Taylor put her attention back towards the other people in the room.

“Is there anything else we need to talk about?” she asked.

The shuffling of paper could be heard as the men and women went through their notes to make sure they hadn’t missed anything.

Taylor continued.

“Well, some of you will see me at the next meeting tomorrow anyways, so if any questions should arise until then, please write them down.”

Everyone nodded at her.

“Enjoy your lunch break, everyone” Taylor said and got up.

She went outside of the room and towards the elevator down the hall, one of her security guards who had been waiting in front of the door trailing along behind her.

Inside the elevator that took her to her hotel room where she wanted to quickly freshen up and change, she texted her friend Selena that she was out of the meeting and ready for lunch.

 

***

 

The restaurant where the two friends had decided to meet was only a short walk from Taylor’s hotel. She walked there with two of her security guards, but except for a few fans stopping her to ask for a picture – something she could never say no to – the walk was uneventful, with no paparazzi in sight. Taylor hated that she didn’t dare to leave the house without her security, but she knew that that was the price you had to pay for success. She loved her career, and she loved her fans. But sometimes she wanted to walk down the street like a normal twenty-something girl, without being recognized.

Selena was already waiting for her inside the restaurant. She had wisely picked a table at the back of the room that allowed them to have some privacy. When she saw Taylor approaching, she quickly got up to hug her friend.

“Taylor! It’s so good to see you! Haven’t seen you in forever!” she laughed.

Taylor hugged her back, then smiled at her friend excitedly.

“I know! We need to catch up so badly!” she said.

The two women sat down, while their respective security guards took their seats at a near table, out of ear-shot but close enough to step in should someone unexpectedly approach the two singers.

After they had studied the menu and ordered, they began chatting excitedly.

The first thing Taylor asked about was her friend’s vacation with her parents - she had sent her pictures almost every day. She was glad that the girl had been able to take some time off, since she had the release of her first solo album and a big tour coming up.

“Cheers to that!” Taylor said when their drinks had arrived.

“I’m so proud of you, Selena!”

Selena smiled at her widely, her brown eyes sparkling.

“Thank you, Taylor!” she returned.

“Congrats on finishing the first leg of the tour! Cheers!”

Their meals came, and they started eating. They had both opted for sea-food spaghetti. Of course Selena had to take a photo of her food before she touched it.

They talked about this and that, how they had spent the 4th of July the week before and how long they’d still be in NYC for. Taylor had gone back to Nashville the day after her meeting with the CA and celebrated the holiday at her parents’ house with her high-school friend, Abigail. She was planning on staying at her Rhode Island home for a while in the upcoming weeks.

“Oh, what I wanted to ask about” Selena said suddenly.

“I didn’t look at social media during my vacation but when I came back I saw the talk about a video from your show in St Louis, what’s up with that?” she asked.

Taylor put her fork down. She never wanted to talk about the incident ever again. None of her friends, not even Selena, could ever know about the existence of the CA.

She dramatically rolled her eyes.

“Ehh, it was something stupid. I made a wrong step and almost fell down the stairs but caught myself on time. It must’ve looked funny, I mean you saw the video and the rumors. People will create drama and rumors out of everything” she chuckled.

Selena didn’t look too convinced, but let it go.

“Yeah, the media can be ridiculous. Especially towards you. I’m so sorry this keeps happening to you, Taylor” she said.

“Yeah, thank you” Taylor replied.

They ate in silence for a while.

When Taylor had finished, she ordered another glass of lemonade. Selena chuckled.

“What?” Taylor defended herself.

“It’s not even 2 pm and it’s hot as hell outside. I’m not gonna drink alcohol now” she said.

Selena grinned, but then unexpectedly looked at her with a more serious expression on her face.

“So, how’ve you been doing, Taylor?” she asked.

“Are you slowly getting over-“

“I’m fine” Taylor said harsher than intended.

When she saw the hurt on Selena’s face, she apologized.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to be rude. But really, I’m fine. I haven’t been thinking about her as much as I used to.”

Selena raised an eyebrow.

“Oh, any particular reason for that?”

Taylor looked down at the glass in front of her and played with the straw.

“Taylor …” Selena started.

“I may or may not have met a girl that I can’t stop thinking about. But it’s … complicated. We’ve only ever met twice and talked on the phone once, very briefly. I don’t even know her” Taylor stated.

“But you want to get to know her?” Selena asked.

“Yeah …” Taylor said.

“So ask her to hang out?” Selena asked confused.

“As I said, it’s not that easy, Selena.”

Taylor looked at her friend.

“I kinda met her at Club Red …”

“Oh my god …” Selena breathed out.

“Don’t tell me you’re crushing on a fan?”

Instead of answering, Taylor just made a grimace.

“You really are something else” Selena laughed.

“How old is she? At what show did you meet?”

Taylor told her friend about Karlie and her twin sisters, only leaving out a few details.

When Selena asked why they had met twice and talked on the phone, Taylor felt caught out in her white lie. She felt her hands starting to shake and hid them on her lap where Selena couldn’t see them from her side of the table.

“Oh, she gave me a really nice gift and letter with her phone number on it, so I thought I’d call her back and I invited her to the last show in Nashville the next day, and we hung out backstage a little. She was really nice and respectful, we had a good time” she said quickly.

Selena seemed to accept the answer.

“You always do so much for your fans, Taylor, I really admire that” she smiled.

“So, you haven’t deleted her number yet?” she smirked.

Taylor blushed.

“Oh … no, I haven’t. I …” she didn’t know what to say to that.

Selena started laughing.

“It sounds like the girl is really nice and not as obnoxious – no offense – as some of your younger fans, you guys are about the same age. I get that you’re the pop star and she’s the fan, but no one says you can’t make friends with your fans. Just be careful that she doesn’t use you. I don’t see anything wrong with asking her to hang out, especially if she lives here. You’re in NYC a lot too, Tay. And the fact that it’s been a week and she hasn’t spammed you with text messages yet and didn’t give your number to anyone else speaks for her too” Selena said softly.

“Yeah … but what if she thinks I’m weird …” Taylor mumbled.

“Oh come on. You have nothing to lose. Besides, it’s good for you to think about something else than your break-up for a little” Selena assured her.

Taylor smiled in response.

“Thanks, Sel. I’ll try. I’ll keep you updated.”

Her friend smiled back at her.

 _Let’s hope I don’t make a mess this time_ , Taylor thought to herself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! 
> 
> As always, feedback is appreciated!


	8. Eight

The early afternoon sun was shining bright and hot onto the city, the sky a deep blue. Karlie was lying on her blanket under a tree at one of her favorite spots in Central Park. Inside the city the heat was unbearable, it was accumulated between the high building and the innumerable cars, not to mention all the people. The tall girl was happy to have this park, the city’s green lung, as a refuge on a hot day like this. As much as she loved the city life, sometimes she wanted her peace and quiet. Sipping on her bottle of ice tea, she could see New York’s buildings surrounding the big park from her spot.

Up until earlier she and Jourdan had been studying here together, but the other girl had left for work a while ago. Karlie did not envy her. She was glad that her summer classes and tutoring classes were over for today and she could enjoy the weather. It was the second week of summer sessions, and Karlie had gotten over her initial anxiety towards teaching the group of high-school students – they were all friendly and the classes went well. The group consisted mostly of girls, and she hoped to spark their interest in computer programming enough that they would consider studying it at college after they’d graduate. There were not many other girls in her college classes on the subject, and she hated that she stood out.

Karlie put her headphones in and put her music on shuffle. She was lying on her back with her hands crossed behind her head, looking up at the treetop and watching the birds. 

Her thoughts drifted to the events from the weekend before last. It all seemed so far away now. She still couldn’t believe that she had met Taylor in person, and how nice the singer had been. And how she had wished that the blonde wasn’t a famous pop-star when she herself was a random college kid, so that maybe they’d have a chance to become friends. She didn’t know what it was, but she had felt drawn towards the singer beyond the obvious star-struckness that came from Taylor being her favorite musician. She had felt like they would get along well if they got to know each other.

She sighed. She didn’t dare tell anyone about this for fear of being laughed at. Not her friends, not even her sisters. Even though the concert and the following meeting was all the sisters texted about in their group chat, much to their older sister Kristine’s annoyance, who had already threatened to leave the chat numerous times and had probably turned the notifications off because she didn’t want to read about her younger sisters’ fangirling 24/7.

“If this was a movie” came on shuffle and Karlie giggled to herself, finding it fitting in the moment. She closed her eyes and listened to the song carefully, imagining what it would be like to meet Taylor again. It reminded her of all the times she had been lying on her bed in her childhood bedroom, listening to Taylor’s songs and imagining her future life in New York. _Someday I’ll be living in a big old city …_ she would always tell herself. And now she had been living her dream-life for two years already. Sure, it was not always easy, and she had gotten her heart broken, but she nevertheless loved her college, her job, the city and her friends.

And about that crazy little thing called love – well, she would figure it out someday.

She realized she must’ve fallen asleep, because she woke up from her phone buzzing in her hand that was still loosely holding the device on the blanket. She noticed how hungry she was and decided to pack up her stuff and grab something to eat on the way home. It was only a short subway ride to the student apartment complex where she lived near the campus. Karlie turned around on the blanket to read the text message she had just gotten. She almost screamed when she saw who it was from.

 

**Taylor**

Hey Karlie, this is Taylor. How are you doing? I’m in NYC until next week. Would you like to grab a coffee sometime? This has nothing to do with you-know-what, I just want to hang out. I hope this is ok to ask you. I would like to see you again!

_4:39 pm_

 

Karlie spent the rest of the day trying to come up with an appropriate reply.

 

 

***

 

**Karlie**

Hey Taylor. I’m so happy to hear from you. I’m good, spent today at Central Park after my classes. How are you? I would love to hang out. This honestly feels a little surreal right now. But I’d love to grab coffee sometime. I’m free Friday after classes. – Karlie

_7:56 pm_

 

 _Look at me, exchanging grammatically correct text messages with Taylor Swift_ , Karlie thought to herself and laughed. _Regular Tuesday. Or should I say, typical Tuesday night_. She snorted. _Ok Jourdan is right, I’m in too deep. Why does Taylor want to hang out with me again?_

She plopped down on her bed, face first into the pillows and blankets, her phone landing next to her. She really hoped this wasn’t an extended practical joke, or a dream, or sunstroke. She could feel anxiety rising in her chest. _She’s probably gonna realize what a loser and weird fangirl I am and regret ever asking me to hang out. She is too generous with her fans. What did I do to deserve this? God, this must be a prank. Why would my favorite musician ask me to hang out? Has this even happened to anyone ever before? I’m just a random college kid. How am I supposed to tell- Oh God._

Karlie realized that she had no idea how to tell the twins, or Cara, or anyone else about the text she had received today. _Am I even allowed to tell anyone? Would they even believe me?_ She decided not to tell anyone for now and ask Taylor about it when they would meet again. _Oh God, what am I going to wear?_

Karlie put her pillow over her head and groaned. As much as she liked to present herself as calm and collected, she really was an overthinker. She didn’t like others to know that every little thing got to her. And now she would have to keep this little secret at least until Friday, or whenever she and Taylor would hang out. _Out of every possible scenario that I ever imaged meeting Taylor in, this was not how it went down_ , she thought. But then again, she wasn’t going to complain. Things like this didn’t happen every day, after all.

She didn’t know that somewhere in a hotel room in the same city, Taylor was having very similar thoughts and anxieties.

Over the next two days, the two women kept texting back and forth, agreeing to meet for coffee that Friday. It took Karlie a lot of convincing for them to go to a “normal” café she and her friends went to a lot and not somewhere with a private area for them to hide from possible paparazzi. Taylor had admitted that she wanted her life to be less complicated when it came to being outside in public, and Karlie had assured her that she was fine with going to a “normal” spot, even if Taylor got recognized. Her security would still be there, and Karlie knew the baristas and assured the singer the café had a friendly atmosphere. Taylor on the other hand assured Karlie that it was ok for her to tell her friends and family about them hanging out, which Karlie was grateful for, but as she grew more comfortable texting with Taylor she realized she wanted to keep her little secret a little longer. If some of her class-mates would see her on Friday, then so be it. She would tell her friends and sisters soon enough. She and Taylor were just two normal American girls hanging out, she told herself.

 

***

 

The Reign Coffee was a homey café west of Central Park, a few blocks away from Karlie’s campus. The student came here often with her friends and class-mates to catch up or to study when they wanted to get out of the library. The café had opened during Karlie’s freshman year, the owner having just moved to NYC from Seattle. Most of the baristas were college students, Karlie knew some of them in passing. Thanks to the café’s popularity and favorable location, the owner regularly got more applications than she could employ people, and Karlie’s neighbor Jourdan had been sad not to get a job there.

This Friday afternoon the café’s big full-front windows were wide open and all the outside seats taken, the people enjoying the warm weather under the shadow cast by the trees on the sidewalk. Inside there were only three tables taken. Karlie was sitting on the couch at a table for two at the back of the café, waiting for Taylor and tapping her foot under the table. Her hands fiddled with the menu and she glanced at her phone every two seconds. It was still a few minutes until their arranged time.

After a while she noticed that the chatter that flowed into the room from outside had suddenly stopped. She looked towards the door and saw Taylor walking in, a security guard as always a few steps behind her. When Taylor’s eyes scanned the room and found Karlie, the singer’s face lit up and she walked towards the student, causing everyone else’s eyes to follow her and land on Karlie. The girl felt overwhelmed. On the one hand she was happy that Taylor had really showed up and was walking towards her excitedly, on the other hand she was nervous from suddenly being the center of attention. She put the menu down and got up and before she knew it she was wrapped in a hug by Taylor. Now she felt _really_ overwhelmed.

Her heart felt like it was beating out of her chest, and she felt a little dizzy inhaling the singer’s scent that smelled like vanilla shampoo. This was very different from the awkward hand-shake they had exchanged a week earlier. The two women separated.

“It’s so good to see you, Karlie!” Taylor said excitedly as they were sitting down.

Meanwhile, Taylor’s security guard had taken a seat a few tables away from them and had pulled out a book and his phone. Everyone else in the café had seemingly gotten over their initial surprise at seeing the popstar walk in and had gone back to their own talks and minded their own business. Karlie was grateful for that. For a second she had doubted her choice of inviting Taylor to this place.

Karlie briefly wondered if she would ever stop feeling underdressed in the singer’s presence despite her best efforts.

“It’s good to see you, too” she finally replied and smiled.

“Thank you for texting me” she added and blushed.

Taylor blushed a little too and quickly looked down at the menu on the table.

“So this is one of your favorite spots?” she asked, looking up again and letting her eyes wander across the room.

“Yeah, it is. My friends and I come here often. It’s a popular spot with people from my college.”

During their text message exchange Karlie had already told the singer a little about her studies and college life.

“How was your summer session today?” Taylor asked, seeming genuinely interested.

Karlie felt overwhelmed again as she suddenly realized she was really sitting there, having a conversation with Taylor about her every-day life; but decided to put that thought aside for now and to freak out later.

“It was great, thank you. I’m relieved the classes that I tutor are going so well” she replied.

She wanted to add something, but a waitress had approached their table. The girl was a senior at Karlie’s college, and she looked about as nervous as Karlie had felt all week when she looked at Taylor, obviously recognizing her, but not saying anything and staying professional.

Both women ordered ice-coffee and sandwiches. Karlie wasn’t sure if she was able to eat while being such a bundle of nerves, but she hadn’t eaten since lunch and felt a little hungry.

“Thank you, Nahomi” Taylor said reading the waitress’ nametag and then smiled at her.

The girl looked like she was about to faint, but mumbled something Karlie couldn’t understand and then went to the kitchen.

Turning back around to Karlie, Taylor giggled.

“People always get so flustered when they see me” she laughed.

 _Well, duh_ , Karlie thought, but remained silent.

“So, tell me how you got into coding and all that nerd stuff?” Taylor asked playfully, changing the topic.

Karlie started rambling about her fascination for science and technology and how to her code was all about creativity, just like art and fashion, and creating something out of nothing.

Taylor listened carefully, nodding along and once again finding the girl’s rambling endearing.

When their order arrived, the conversation had moved along to college life, how Taylor sometimes wished she had gone to college, and the craziness of Taylor’s tour schedule. The conversation flowed easily, both of them always knowing something they wanted to say, with hardly any awkward silences in between. Karlie found herself completely engaged in the conversation and interested in everything Taylor had to say, something that she didn’t experience a lot with other people. Taylor on the other hand found herself wanting to get to know the taller girl more the more she learned about her, and was happy that the girl didn’t ask her any intrusive, private questions as was sometimes the case with fans. In fact, it didn’t even feel like a fan-popstar conversation but like one between friends who hadn’t seen each other in years.

At one point, Karlie’s phone that was lying on the table started buzzing with an incoming call from Cara, but Karlie swiped the call away. She silently thanked herself for having her phone on silent still, because she would have been too embarrassed had Taylor heard that her ringtone was one of her songs. She made a mental note to change her ringtone should she hang out with Taylor again.

“You can answer your phone, I don’t mind” Taylor said, but Karlie shook her head.

“No, it’s fine. It’s probably just about our weekend plans, I can text her later” she said.

Taylor smiled in response.

“So how are the twins doing?” she asked to start the conversation again.

Karlie felt a warmth in her chest from Taylor’s genuine interest in her family.

“They’re good, enjoying their last summer back in St Louis. They’re going to college in the fall”, she explained.

“Oh really? Where?” Taylor asked.

“UNC. Mom and dad are already freaking out about their youngest daughters moving out, they’re gonna get empty nest syndrome so bad” Karlie laughed.

“But at least it’s still on the east coast, so the distance will be manageable. And our parents still have our dog” she added and giggled.

“Really? You have a dog?” Taylor asked.

“We do.”

Karlie showed her a picture of her dog Joe on her phone, and the conversation turned into a debate whether dogs or cats were better companions. Karlie obviously knew about Meredith but was excited when Taylor showed her pictures from her phone she had never posted on Instagram. Her heart fluttered when she realized that Taylor seemed to trust her, even if it was nothing too personal.

They talked more about their families and how it had been for them to start living independently at first. They discovered their mutual love for baking and cooking as well as a shared love and appreciation for their family and close friends. They laughed a lot, enjoying each other’s company and just getting to know each other. Time flew by.

The waitress from before approached their table again after a while.

“Excuse me, I don’t want to interrupt, but it’s almost 6:30 and we’re closing in a couple of minutes” she said shyly.

Karlie and Taylor’s eyes went wide. When they looked around, they saw that there was only one group of customers remaining in the café apart from Taylor’s security guard, and another waitress had started stacking the chairs and tables outside.

“Oh! We completely lost track of time! Of course, we don’t want to be in the way of your closing-up routine” Taylor said.

“Could we have the bill?”

“Of course” the waitress answered and left towards the bar again.

Karlie did her best to protest, but Taylor insisted on paying for her.

“Please Karlie, it’s not a big deal. I invited you to hang out, after all” Taylor assured her.

“It can be your turn next time” she grinned.

Karlie slowly nodded. _Next time?_ She thought, surprised but not unpleasantly so.

Nahomi, the waitress, came back with the bill.

When Taylor pulled an extra 50 dollar out of her wallet and gave it to her, the girl’s eyes went wide.

“It’s a tip, for you” Taylor explained.

“I had a very good time here, and the coffee and sandwich was delicious. Thank you for being so friendly.”

“Thank … thank you so much” Nahomi stammered, tearing up.

“I … would … can we …” she started but was unable to form a sentence.

Taylor smiled.

“Do you want to take a picture together?” she asked in a friendly tone.

“Yes”, the waitress said.

“If that’s alright with you.”

“Of course” Taylor answered and got up from her chair.

The waitress handed Karlie her phone and stood next to Taylor.

The two women laughed at their height difference as Karlie took the picture for them.

“Thank you so much” the waitress said again, then went back behind the counter.

As they were leaving, Karlie could see the girl frantically typing away on her phone.

Outside the air was still warm. Karlie was unsure what to do next.

“Thank you for today, I had a really good time” Taylor spoke up after they had stood around awkwardly for a few seconds.

The singer fiddled with her purse that was swung over her right shoulder.

“I had a good time too” Karlie said softly.

“So, umm, how did you get here?” she asked, looking around for a car that could be Taylor’s.

“Oh, the SUV is parked two streets away and we walked here, didn’t want to draw more attention towards us than we already do” the singer laughed.

“So, would you like to hang out again next time I’m in the city?” she added.

Karlie gulped.

“Yes, of course. If that’s alright with you. I know you’re busy and-“

Taylor interrupted her before Karlie could start rambling again.

“Karlie, it’s fine, I wouldn’t be asking you if I didn’t want to hang out, ok?”

Karlie nodded in response.

They promised to text each other, then hugged goodbye. It still overwhelmed Karlie, and she didn’t quite know what to make of the butterflies in her stomach. Similarly, Taylor thought about how she didn’t want their time together to end just yet, but was scared to make things weird by asking the taller girl to find another restaurant for dinner. For their first time hanging out, things had gone extremely well, she thought.

Their ways separated, Taylor headed for her car with her security guard in tow and Karlie to the subway station nearby, but the thoughts that ran through their minds were similar. For the rest of the day, neither of them could stop smiling and kept replaying their time together in their heads, thankful for the strange course the universe had taken that had allowed them to cross paths.


	9. Nine

After their coffee date (even though neither of them called it that), texting became a daily thing for the two women, with the occasional FaceTime call. Both of them had started to feel more relaxed in the virtual presence of one another, and it felt like they had been friends for years. They talked about their days as well as their families and friends, the only indicator that they had not actually been friends for years being the occasional question of ‘wait, who’s that again?’.

One aspect, however, was different. While Taylor had spent an hour on the phone with both her friends Selena and Abigail after the coffee date gushing about Karlie, the younger girl had still neglected to tell anyone about her new friend, much less her growing crush on the singer. She didn’t know why, but she felt like she had to protect Taylor, even though she wasn’t sure from what. She was a bad liar and she knew it, but it wasn’t like the twins or her friends even suspected she was in touch with Taylor, so no one had asked her about it and she hadn’t brought it up. So technically she wasn’t lying to anyone, she told herself as she felt guilty about being dishonest with people close to her.

That was how she found herself getting into a predicament the next time she hung out with Cara. It was another hot summer day, and after Karlie’s classes the two friends had agreed to meet at the cafeteria on campus, grabbing something to eat and a cool drink to sit outside on the meadow next to the cafeteria, a popular spot when the weather was nice.

After talking about this and that for a while, Cara suddenly spoke up, her demeanor unusually quiet for the out-going girl.

“So, Karlie … can I ask you something?” she said cautiously.

“Oh, sure” Karlie replied, suddenly feeling nervous. _What’s this about?_ She thought.

“The other day when I called you, you didn’t answer the phone and you didn’t text me back either as you usually would. What’s up with that? Did I do anything wrong? It made me quite upset, I’m not used to this behavior from you” Cara said, her eyes looking anywhere but Karlie’s face.

_Oh_ , Karlie thought.

“Oh God, Cara, I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to not get back to you. I’m sorry I upset you. I was just busy and then forgot about it. I’m so sorry” Karlie stated.

Cara looked up at her friend.

“It was a Friday afternoon, not even you are too busy with anything during that time” she said, suspicion in her voice.

“This is like the other day when you couldn’t tell me what kind of ‘meeting’ you were attending” she continued, making air quotes with her fingers.

“Is there anything going on? Are you dating anyone and don’t want me to know?” she asked.

“No!” Karlie said too quickly.

“I’m sorry, Cara. When you called me on Friday, I was hanging out with someone I met at my summer sessions. Not the one I’m tutoring obviously, but the class that I attend” she added, fingers fiddling with her water bottle.

_What the fuck, Karlie, why the fuck are you lying, what’s wrong with you_ , she thought to herself, but the damage had already been done. She would have to go with that story now, hoping Cara would drop the topic.

The British girl didn’t look too convinced, but seemed to accept Karlie’s explanation.

“You made a new friend? That’s great! What year are they in, what’s their name?”

Karlie tightly pressed her lips together.

_Shit._

She forced a smile.

“Ugghh … Alison. Her name is Alison. She’s a sophomore” she said.

Cara smiled back at her friend.

“Awesome! Can’t wait to meet her someday!”

Their conversation went on after that, but all Karlie could think about was how she had just lied to her friend’s face. She didn’t know what had gotten into her. Taylor had told her it was ok to tell the people close to her, and they had even hung out somewhere where they could’ve run into people Karlie knew. She knew that she was making things unnecessarily complicated. But now she would have to run with the story she had made up.

 

***

 

The rain came pouring down hard and loud thunder could be heard in the distance, followed by lighting a few seconds later. The two women squeaked and giggled as they got out of the car and into the building as fast as they could, doing their best to hold up their umbrellas.

“We made it!” Karlie laughed despite her shoe being wet from the puddle she had stepped into.

Taylor just grinned at her in response.

“Let’s go!” she said and went towards the stairs, making a gesture to Karlie to follow her.

Taylor had been looking forward to today all week. After their ‘coffee date’ she and Karlie had gone to dinner once when Taylor was in NYC – she may or may not have placed an appointment so she could meet the college student – but otherwise they had been texting and FaceTiming a lot. It was never enough for Taylor, but she was also aware that Karlie was easily overwhelmed and didn’t want to crush her with her attention.

When she had learned that Karlie was a fitness freak, she had challenged her to a workout session with her personal trainer. Taylor already knew that Karlie was way more athletic than she was, but she didn’t mind. The younger girl had accepted the challenge, excited to work with a professional instead of going to her college’s gym by herself, and all Taylor wanted was to spend time with her, anyways.

As they went up the stairs towards the second floor of the building where the gym was located, Taylor felt happy and excited. It surely had something to do with the fact that her security guard didn’t have to follow her when she went to the high-class gym, but in the back of her mind she knew that it was Karlie’s presence that had that effect on her.

They were greeted by Taylor’s personal trainer Rob, a muscular guy who didn’t accept any excuses when it came to working out, but Taylor knew that that was just him being professional and that he was actually a friendly and funny person. Taylor shook his hand.

“Rob, good to see you again! This is my friend Karlie, we wanted to work out together today” she said and smiled.

Rob looked Karlie over, then shook her hand as well.

“Hello Karlie, nice to meet you. From what I can tell from looking at you, Taylor has some competition today” he smirked.

Karlie blushed.

“Hey!” Taylor protested, even though she knew it was true.

She took Karlie’s arm and led her towards the locker room.

When she opened the door, she suddenly realized that they would have to change in front of each other.

_I did not think this through_ , she thought.

They awkwardly chose opposite ends of the bench to change, all the while continuing to talk, but not looking at each other. There were no other people in the locker room besides them.

They locked their belongings, took their water bottles and headed out again. Rob was already waiting for them at the treadmills by the windows. There was a row of around ten of the fitness equipment, but only two were occupied. The men and women training were unbothered by Taylor’s presence as she had been here oftentimes before.

“So, for a warm-up you will do light jogging on the treadmill for 20 minutes, then stretch and then we’ll do strength training” he explained towards Karlie.

“Sounds good” the tall girl said and smiled.

Taylor already looked like she was ready to go home.

“Oh come on Taylor” Karlie laughed when she saw the singer’s face.

“Shouldn’t you be used to this workout routine? How often do you come here, anyways?” she asked and nudged her arm.

“Once a week if I’m lucky, but she hasn’t been around much lately” Rob answered in her stead.

“What?” Karlie exclaimed.

“How often do you work out, Karlie?” the trainer asked.

“Well, I go to my college’s gym two to three times a week, and sometimes I run outside, depending on the weather” she explained.

“That’s amazing, Karlie” Rob said with genuine admiration.

“Taylor, you could learn a thing or two from this one!” he joked.

Taylor just grumbled in response.

“I already regret this” she said, but then grinned.

Karlie grinned back at her. She was determined to impress the older girl.

The workout went as expected.

Karlie was having the best time, taking advice from Rob and enjoying the gym’s amenities. Taylor could hardly keep up with her.

“Alright, the last exercise will be planks, and then we’ll be done” Rob announced.

The two women were doing the exercise on their fitness mats across from each other. Karlie could easily hold her torso up for a long time even while stretching out her legs. Taylor was having a harder time, but she wasn’t complaining as the sight of Karlie’s muscles and athletic body in front of her was not an unpleasant view.

During the last round, she decided to mess with Karlie a little so she could have some fun.

While they were both holding up their upper bodies on their arms, she intently focused her look on Karlie’s biceps. After a few seconds, Karlie’s arms became weak and she lost her balance, disrupting the exercise. She perplexedly looked at Taylor, who grinned at her.

Rob looked as confused as Karlie.

“Looks like Taylor wins the last round!” he announced and ended their session.

The two women got up from their mats and thanked him, then returned the mats to their assigned stand.

“What was that, Taylor?” Karlie asked as Rob had left the two women alone.

“What? Are you blaming me because you’re weak?” the singer replied innocently.

“Taylor! Don’t you think I may be a little too used to these kinds of shenanigans, growing up with the twins?” she said trying to sound annoyed, but she couldn’t help the smile that crept on her face.

“Oh come on, you think it was funny too” Taylor said and smirked.

“How else would I have a chance against you?”

Karlie really could not be mad at her. She reached out to touch the singer’s arm.

“As long as you’re having fun …” she grinned.

Taylor felt something like an electric shock going through her body at the younger girl’s gentle touch.

“I did” she said more seriously.

“Thank you for tagging along today. And for kicking my ass, I guess” she grinned again.

“Anytime” Karlie replied with a smirk.

Taylor felt happy that the girl seemed to feel more comfortable around her each time they hung out and had started showing more of her quirky personality instead of being distanced and star-struck. It meant a lot to Taylor, even if she wasn’t sure how she was supposed to communicate this to the taller girl without pushing boundaries.

“Are you still free after this?” Taylor asked shyly as they made their way back to the locker room.

“Sure” Karlie replied and smiled her wide signature smile.

Taylor felt butterflies in her stomach each time she was at the receiving end of this beautiful smile, and this time was no different. Nevertheless, it caught her off guard.

“Um … I … would you like to get coffee after this?” she managed to get out.

“I’d love to” Karlie said and smiled even wider.

Taylor smiled back at her.

I wish I could make her smile like this all the time, she thought to herself.

 

***

 

Outside the sun had started to shine again, and the pavement was glowing from the earlier rainfall. The temperature had dropped considerably compared to the days before, and the people crowded the sidewalks again. It was a pleasant Saturday afternoon at the end of July.

After Taylor had called her security guard to pick them up at the gym, they had walked around for a while and decided on a small café a few streets away. Karlie knew that this was not a typical student area of the city, so she was positive they wouldn’t run into anyone she knew. She had still not told anyone about her new friendship with Taylor.

By now, Karlie had almost gotten used to getting stared at when in public with Taylor. They picked a table at the back of the café, with the security guard sitting near them. Karlie didn’t feel like drinking coffee after their workout and ordered a smoothie instead as well as an avocado sandwich. After thinking about getting a piece of chocolate cake, Taylor followed suit and picked a smoothie and sandwich as well.

“You’re going to get me to eat healthy if we keep this up” she joked, and Karlie blushed.

Once more, Taylor found the younger girl’s shyness endearing.

_I wonder what the twins said when Karlie told them she’s hanging out with me_ , she thought _. I haven’t been in touch with them since the meeting_. She didn’t know how to ask Karlie without sounding arrogant though, and so she decided not to say anything. It wasn’t all that important, after all.

Her thoughts drifted to the meeting a few weeks ago and the association.

“Oh, did you hear from the CA again? Did the twins say anything?” she asked in a low voice, even though no one was in ear-shot.

“No, I’m not usually in touch with them. But Kimby and Kariann didn’t mention anything either. But I haven’t seen any new discussions about the video, so it must have died down” Karlie replied.

“Yeah, I think so too. My publicist keeps an eye on it, though. I did talk to Mr Edwards on the phone the other day, though, about my funding and involvement in the CA. I’m trying to learn more” the singer said.

“I think that’s great” Karlie said sincerely.

Their orders arrived and they quickly changed the topic to their plans for the next weeks.

Karlie was sad to learn that Taylor was going to go to LA the next week and would be gone over her birthday, too. Not that she could have just invited her to her party when she hadn’t even told anyone about her, but it nevertheless made her feel sad. She didn’t let it show, however in order to not overstep her boundaries with the older girl. Taylor was a busy woman after all and surely didn’t want to spend all her time with her.

Taylor on the other hand had somehow wanted to get invited to Karlie’s party, even though she wouldn’t be able to make it. She thought that while the younger girl had grown more comfortable around her, she was self-conscious about their new friendship or thought it was weird that the singer would want to spend time with her. She held back in showing the student how much their friendship really meant to her and how she had long stopped thinking about it as a fan-musician relationship. They were just two girls in their early twenties hanging out, and she could only hope that Karlie would see it that way too before long.

They resumed their happy chatter, talking about this and that. One would think that with texting every day they wouldn’t have as much to tell the other one, but that was not the case. The conversation flowed easily between them and the two women made each other laugh. When it was time to go home, they hugged for a long time, not wanting to let the other one go. They promised to hang out as soon as Taylor would be back on the east coast. As they went their separate ways, both women already anticipated the next time they would see each other and couldn’t wipe the smiles off their faces.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading and to everyone who leaves kudos and comments, it means a lot to me!


	10. Ten

“Happy birthday!” Cara shouted and wrapped Karlie in a hug as soon as the taller girl opened the door.

“Finally you can drink legally!” she added with a smirk.

Karlie laughed and reciprocated the hug.

They separated and Karlie closed the door again, leading her friend into her apartment.

Cara was the last one to arrive. Their mutual friend Derek as well as Kimby and Kariann were already there, sitting on the couch, listening to music and catching up. Derek had been Karlie’s best friend since high school times, so the twins knew him of course. Karlie felt lucky that she and Derek had been able to continue living in the same city, even if they went to different schools now.

Cara plopped down on the floor next to the couch. The small apartment had already reached maximum capacity, but neither of them minded.

“Bloody hell Karlie, give me some booze already!” the British girl exclaimed.

Derek snorted.

“When will you stop using that expression, Cara?” he laughed.

“Never!” the brunette announced.

“How was vaycay, Derek?” she asked.

Karlie brought Cara a glass of Bacardi cola, which Derek had brought with him earlier.

She caught her sister’s look.

“No, you’re not drinking, Kimby. I’m your adult supervision tonight. I don’t want mom to get mad” she said pointedly.

Kimby just made a grimace in response. The twins had been lucky to be allowed to visit Karlie on her birthday, so she was aware that they really shouldn’t push it.

“Thanks, Karlie” Cara said and smiled.

“Vacation was great. San Francisco is an amazing city. But I’m also glad to be back again” Derek answered.

“Awesome! I really want to go sometime” Cara replied.

“Where’s birthday girl number two?” she asked towards Karlie.

Karlie’s neighbor Jourdan and she shared a birthday, though Jourdan was two years older.

“Jourdan is at a friend’s house pre-gaming, we will meet them later when we go out” Karlie said.

“But we had breakfast together this morning” she added.

“Sweet” Cara said.

Even though Cara and Jourdan knew each other through Karlie, the tall girl sometimes felt like the two got along way better with each other. And she definitely knew that if Jourdan wasn’t straight, Cara would have asked her out like, one and a half years ago. Luckily Cara wasn’t the type to dwell on unavailable crushes so it was not much of an issue.

The group continued talking, laughing, drinking and eating the snacks Karlie had prepared, and Cara and Derek gave Karlie their small presents. The twins easily fit into Karlie’s group of friends, which Karlie felt grateful for. The only thing that was nagging at the back of her mind was that she hadn’t heard from Taylor yet today. She knew the singer was in LA and busy, but she nevertheless wished that she’d call. She didn’t know how to explain a call from Taylor to the rest of the group, but they wouldn’t have to know, right? She had still not told anyone about Taylor, and still kicked herself for lying to Cara two weeks earlier.

After a while the group decided to head out, the bar they wanted to go to was not too far from Karlie’s apartment, and outside the air was warm. Karlie texted Jourdan that they were on their way and they would meet them later.

 

***

 

Sunset and Vine was a bar popular with students in the area, given its location near the campus and student housing and reasonable prices. Karlie was not the type to go out often, but when she did it was usually here. The year before she had often watched the Summer Olympics with some of her class-mates on the big screens the bar provided.

When the group went inside, there was music playing at a moderate volume, so that one would still be able to hold a conversation. It was still before 9pm and there weren’t any people dancing yet, only a few groups of people sitting on the high tables and at the bar. Karlie and her friends went towards an empty table at the back. The bar had a cozy atmosphere, with its hardwood floor and beige natural stone wall. The bar counter stretched over one entire side of the room, and there were colorful lightbulbs hanging on the low ceiling.

The group ordered their drinks – of course no alcohol for the twins – and continued their excited chatter. After a while Jourdan and three of her friends arrived; they joined the others and birthday wishes and hellos were exchanged once again.

Karlie couldn’t help but glance at her phone from time to time, hoping for a call from Taylor. She knew that the twins had noticed but didn’t let it show and instead did her best to shelter her thoughts so that Kariann wouldn’t be able to hear them. It was a skill her sister had taught her when they were younger, and she was glad for it. She didn’t need her little sister and, inevitably, her twin sister to know what she was thinking about every time she was around. Karlie wondered how much Kariann could really hear in this loud room full of people, but she decided to take precaution anyways.

 _Karlie’s acting a little strange today_ , Kariann silently communicated to her twin sister.

 _Yeah, she keeps checking her phone_ , Kimby answered.

The twins wondered what was going on with their sister, but then decided not to dwell on it. They would simply ask her the next day.

A few minutes later Karlie could feel her phone buzz in her pocket and quickly looked at it. It was a text message from Taylor wishing her a happy birthday and telling her to have fun tonight. Karlie couldn’t help the smile that spread across her face.

“Hey, what are you smiling about? Who did you just get a message from, Karlie?” Derek asked curiously.

“Oh, just a friend” Karlie answered quickly.

“What friend? Why aren’t they invited?” Derek asked.

“Oh, that new friend from summer sessions? What’s her name? Alison? Why didn’t you invite her, Karlie?” Cara chimed in.

The twins exchanged a look.

_Alison?_

“Oh, yeah, it was from Alison. She couldn’t be here today, she’s out of town” Karlie replied, her fingers fiddling with her phone. She took a sip from the beer in front of her to calm her nerves, but it didn’t work.

Once again she felt guilty for lying to her friends, and to the twins.

 _I’m so stupid_ , she thought to herself.

She quickly typed out a reply, then put her phone back into her pocket. A text from Taylor was better than nothing, she thought.

When she looked up she found the twins staring at her with wide eyes.

 _Oh shit_ , Karlie thought.

Everyone else had resumed their conversation, not giving much thought to Karlie’s made-up friend. Kariann however had been able to hear a glimpse of Karlie’s thoughts while the older girl was typing, and the twins had put one and one together.

 _Is she really texting Taylor?_ Kimby thought towards her twin.

 _It seems like it. She was just disappointed that Taylor didn’t call her. And she said the girl is called Alison? That’s Taylor’s middle name. Did she lie to her friends? What’s going on?_ Kariann returned.

 _I have no idea_ , Kimby replied.

The twins continued to pointedly look at their older sister.

 _OK OK! I’m sorry! I will explain everything when we get home!_ Karlie screamed at Kariann inside her head.

She could see the girl wince from the unexpected outburst. Even though Karlie possessed no skills like her sisters, she had grown used to this form of silent communication being a one-way street for her. The look on Kariann’s face told her everything she needed to know, anyways.

They averted their eyes from each other, hoping no one else in the group had noticed the silent exchange.

Karlie took another sip from her beer bottle. When she put it back on the table, it slipped out of her hand. The beverage leaked onto her pants, but she was able to catch the bottle before it hit the ground and made an even bigger mess.

“Karlie! When will you stop being such a clumsy mess?” Jourdan exclaimed, making everyone laugh.

Derek just sighed at his friend and got up to get some paper towels from the bar to clean what had been spilt.

Karlie looked back at the twins and found Kimby smirking at her.

 _That’s what you get,_ the girl mouthed towards her.

Karlie sighed. She deserved it. The twins knew that she had been raised better than to lie to people, and they most likely were just as angry that she hadn’t told them about Taylor either. She deserved to have an entire six pack of beer poured over her.

The rest of the night went by without any mishaps, though Karlie knew that she couldn’t run from the conversation with her sisters that was overdue.

 

***

 

Sunday morning found the three sisters in Karlie’s kitchen, making pancakes and coffee.

“So, about whatever that was last night …” Kimby started and sipped on her coffee.

“Ok, fine. I will tell you everything” Karlie said defeated.

“First of all, I’m so sorry for not telling you. I don’t know why I didn’t do it. But yeah, I’ve been hanging out with Taylor” she continued.

The twins’ jaws dropped to the floor. Kimby almost spat out her coffee.

“Are you serious?” she exclaimed.

Karlie grinned. She knew that this would have the twins shook.

“Yep” she smiled.

“But how? Why? Who initiated it?” Kariann asked.

Karlie took her fresh stack of pancakes at sat down at the kitchen table. She told the twins everything they wanted to know; how Taylor had messaged her out of the blue a week after the meeting, how they had gone for coffee, dinner and to the gym, and how they constantly texted. How it didn’t even feel like Karlie was a fan of Taylor’s anymore, but how she had become a friend. The twins looked touched when Karlie told them that Taylor always asked how they were doing.

“Dude” Kimby uttered when Karlie had finished talking.

“That’s kinda awesome though” Kariann said.

“It is. You should thank us” Kimby added and grinned.

“Shut up” Karlie laughed and got up to get another cup of coffee.

“You should tell Cara and the others about this as well, though. Especially Cara, because you lied to her face about it. I can’t believe you made up ‘Alison’” Kimby snorted.

“Yeah, I will” Karlie replied.

“I’ll text her today and ask to hang out, then I’ll apologize and explain to her. The others I will tell next time I see them” she said.

“Good” Kimby nodded.

“So … “ Kariann dragged out.

Karlie looked at her sister.

“What?” she asked.

“Do you like Taylor?” Kariann asked.

“Of course I do, we’ve become friends. She’s such a genuinely nice person and-“

“No” Kariann interrupted.

“I mean, do you _like_ like her?”

“Ughh …” Karlie started, but then shut her mouth again.

“Why?” she asked.

“Nothing. Just thought I’d ask. Remember what she said about hiding her sexuality during the meeting?” she smirked.

“Yes, I do” Karlie said.

She took another sip of her coffee.

“But we haven’t talked about any of that stuff yet. Besides, doesn’t she have a boyfriend? What’s that all about?” she continued.

“Guess you’ll have to find out” Kariann smirked again.

Karlie felt like the girl knew something that she didn’t, but didn’t dare ask. She had had enough revelations for today.

Kimby, who had been watching her sisters’ exchange, spoke up.

“You definitely have to keep us updated, Karls. I promise we won’t tell anyone, but we expect updates. Oh and, you should probably tell mom and dad sooner or later.”

“I know, will do” Karlie said.

The conversation went towards different topics from there, most importantly the twins’ excitement of starting college the next month and their new dorm and roommates. The twins would be going back to St Louis later that day, and this was the last time until Thanksgiving that they would see Karlie before their move to North Carolina. The sisters made sure to enjoy their remaining time together.


	11. Eleven

Karlie couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed as she took in the sight of the mansion in front of her, pulling into the driveway. She was immediately approached by a security guard who was speaking to someone on his phone. She pulled the window down and took her ID out of her wallet in case she was asked for it, but the guard just took a look inside the car and said “You must be Karlie” in a deep voice, but not unfriendly tone. The girl nodded and he let her drive towards the garage, then continued to speak into his phone.

When Taylor had invited Karlie to her Rhode Island home to make up for missing her birthday, Karlie had felt beyond excited. Nevertheless she had insisted on renting a car and making the three hour drive to Watch Hill on her own instead of having Taylor book a flight for her. It was the same reason she insisted on splitting bills whenever they ate out; she didn’t want Taylor to think that she was using her. Thankfully, Taylor did understand.

After parking the car in the huge garage, she shouldered her bag and made her way towards the front door. The house was big; its walls were white and the roof black, and Karlie could make out three big chimneys on top of it. The air was fresh and there was a light breeze coming from the ocean the property was located next to. She couldn’t wait to see the surely beautiful view from the balcony. The house was surrounded by the beach on one side, and a huge meadow on the other side.

Karlie made her way up the steps leading to the entrance, but even before she reached the door it flung open and Taylor stood in the doorframe, a huge smile on her face. She was wearing a blue summer dress and sandals, and her hair was in a messy ponytail. Before Karlie could take in more of the singer’s appearance, she was wrapped into a tight hug.

“Happy belated birthday, Karlie! I’m so happy you’re here” Taylor said, not letting go yet.

Karlie reciprocated the hug. Taylor smelled like the fresh ocean breeze, and she realized that she had missed being around the singer. She couldn’t help but notice how Taylor’s head seemed to perfectly fit into the crook of her neck.

They separated and smiled at each other. Taylor led the younger girl into the house, excitedly asking her about her drive to Rhode Island and how she had been doing. She gave Karlie a tour of the mansion’s first floor, and was happy how Karlie took her time looking at each room, finding something nice to say about the furniture and decoration every time. Karlie was impressed by the spacious rooms and their elegant, yet modern design. She especially loved the dining room with the big windows overlooking the ocean.

“Let me show you the rooms upstairs and your guest room” Taylor said and led Karlie up the stairs, taking the girl’s bag that had been left in the hallway with her.

“I have my own room?” Karlie asked astonished.

“Of course” Taylor replied laughing.

“Did you think you were gonna sleep on the couch?”

Taylor opened a door on the left side of the corridor they had arrived at.

“Here it is!” she announced, dropping Karlie’s bag at the foot of the bed.

Karlie looked around with her mouth open. The room was as big as her entire apartment. The wide windows with ocean view let in plenty of daylight, and the furniture were a pleasant white-creamy color that fit well with the beige carpet. The dark blue pillows on the queen-size bed were a nice contrast to the rest of the room’s colors.

“This is amazing!” Karlie said astounded.

Then she noticed the bedside table. It had a framed picture of her dog Joe on it as well as a basket with some of her favorite snacks, including healthy cereal bars and dried fruit.

“Taylor!” she laughed.

“Where did you get that photo from? I didn’t send it to you!” she asked, turning around to see Taylor still standing in the doorframe, grinning widely.

“Did you forget who I am?” she joked.

“All I had to do was think about it and there it was. Ok, a little more mental effort than that. But you know what I mean. And before you ask, that’s totally within the rules” she smirked.

“I cannot believe you” Karlie smirked back at her.

“But seriously, thank you so much. This room is amazing, as is your whole house. Thank you for inviting me over!”

Taylor took a step towards the taller girl so that they were only around 3 feet apart and looked into the girl’s green eyes.

“It’s my pleasure, Karlie. I just wanted to make sure you’re comfortable here. I know this house can be overwhelming at first. I’m sorry for not calling on your birthday, I just didn’t want to intrude. I’m glad you’re here now and we can spend some time together” she said sincerely.

Karlie could feel the butterflies in her stomach.

“Thank you, Taylor” she said softly.

They held their gaze and smiled at each other.

Then Taylor seemed to suddenly snap out of her daze.

“Let me show you the rest of the floor” she said and turned around towards the door.

Karlie bit her lip to not let out a sigh as she felt a wave of disappointment rush over her that their small moment was over. _Get it together_ , she thought to herself and followed Taylor into the corridor.

Taylor showed Karlie where the bathrooms, the master bedroom and the balcony were, then they returned to the living room after they each got a glass of water from the kitchen.

Karlie plopped down on the big couch next to where Meredith was lying.

She carefully started petting the cat, who let out soft purrs. Taylor couldn’t believe it.

“She lets you pet her? She _hates_ people!” she exclaimed.

Karlie giggled.

“What can I say? She seems to like me” she said as she scratched the cat between her ears.

“So, what do you want to do today? Do you want to take a walk into town and grab a snack?” Taylor asked.

“That sounds perfect” Karlie replied and smiled at the singer.

“Oh, but before I forget!” Taylor said and quickly went to the next room, looking for something.

“I have a small birthday present for you” she said shyly as she came back.

Karlie blushed.

“Taylor! You didn’t have to-“ she started, but Taylor interrupted her.

“No, it’s nothing big, trust me, and I wanted to” she said and handed Karlie the wrapped gift.

Karlie carefully opened it. Her eyes went wide.

“Do you know what this is?” Taylor asked with a smile on her face.

“Yes, I do. Oh my god Taylor, are you serious?” she looked at her with her eyes still wide open.

In her hand she held an acoustic version of the complete Red album, something she hadn’t even known existed.

“Yeah. I honestly don’t even know if I will still release it, probably not. But I thought you would like it” she said, not looking Karlie in the eyes.

Karlie got up from the couch to hug the older girl.

“Thank you so much” she said.

“Thank you for trusting me enough to give me this. I mean, how do you know I’m not gonna put it on eBay to pay off my student loans?” she joked.

Taylor snorted.

“You didn’t even have the balls to tell your friends and family that you hung out with me a few times” she returned and lightly shoved the taller girl’s shoulder, letting go of their hug.

Karlie blushed once again. She had told Taylor about her white lie towards Cara after her birthday, which the singer had found hilarious. Cara had been mad, but had ultimately understood Karlie’s reasons and forgiven her. Besides, she was way too excited for Karlie to stay mad at her. Her parents had been surprised too. Karlie would have had to tell them before going to Rhode Island anyways, not wanting to lie about her whereabouts. They were fine with it, and just advised Karlie to be careful and to not get carried away. Her other friends had reacted the same way. Karlie felt a lot better since she had told her loved ones what was going on.

“But seriously, Taylor, thank you so much” she reiterated.

“You’re welcome” Taylor smiled.

The two women spent the rest of the day walking around town, getting coffee and snacks and enjoying the warm weather. Karlie noticed how different Taylor was acting around here than in the city, without a security guard watching their every step. Watch Hill was a small town, and there were no paparazzi or fans around. Besides, the locals were used to celebrities visiting the place, anyways.

It was the middle of the week, but Karlie felt as relaxed as she would on a holiday. Her summer sessions had ended the week before and now she still had a little bit of free time until the fall semester started. She thought about how even back in June she would have never imagined that this was how her summer would go. It all felt like a dream.

 

***

 

When Karlie came back from her morning run, Taylor was standing in the kitchen preparing breakfast in her pajamas.

“Good morning!” Karlie exclaimed, in high spirits from the exercise.

“Good Morning” Taylor grumbled sleepily, but couldn’t help but smile at the sight of the younger girl.

After Karlie had taken a shower and gotten dressed for the day, the two of them had breakfast together on the balcony. It was a warm summer morning, and the ocean looked peaceful, the water glistening under the sun. A cool breeze reached them from time to time.

“If I was you I’d go for a run here every morning” Karlie said excitedly.

“It was fantastic!” she continued and kept eating her oatmeal.

“I’m glad you enjoyed it” Taylor smiled.

“I’m way too lazy for things like this. I’m still recovering from our work-out together the other day” she said drily.

“Oh come on” Karlie returned.

“You should come with me tomorrow morning!”

“Yeah … we’ll see” Taylor said, not promising anything.

She sipped on her coffee, and the two ate in silence for a while, enjoying the view.

After they had finished breakfast and Taylor had finally gotten ready for the day as well, they decided to not do anything in particular, just hang out on the lounge chairs in the sun behind the house with a cup of coffee each. Both of them were wearing comfortable shorts and t-shirts, and hadn’t bothered with make-up. Karlie loved seeing this side of Taylor, and it made her feel even closer to her. They talked about this and that and Taylor spoke about what she had been doing in LA the week before.

That’s when Karlie remembered something she had wanted to ask the singer.

“Umm, I hope it’s ok to ask …” she started but trailed off.

“What?” Taylor asked curiously.

“So I saw some candids of you and … what’s he called … Chris? That new actor. I saw some candids of you two at WholeFoods. Is he your boyfriend? I never want to assume two people are together just because they were photographed doing groceries together, especially if it’s a guy and a girl, you know with all that heteronormativity going on and-“ she rambled.

Taylor burst out laughing.

Karlie stopped talking and looked at the singer, puzzled.

“What? What’s so funny?”

“Oh Karlie” Taylor said, leaning over to pat the girl’s arm.

“No, he’s not my boyfriend” she giggled.

“Well, the whole point is to make the public believe that he is, but no, he’s not my boyfriend. I appreciate that you were suspicious because of heteronormativity, though. But I have to say, it’s kinda useful for all the PR things going on.”

Karlie just stared at the singer. Sure, she had had her doubts, and she clearly remembered what Taylor had said at the meeting about hiding her sexuality, but to hear it directly from her was still something else.

“Oh, so …” she started.

“Thank you for trusting me enough to tell me” she said.

“Karlie, you’re _in my house_. The time frame where you were able to run to the media with exclusive news about me has long moved” she joked drily.

“Dammit, I missed my chance” Karlie joked back.

The grinned at each other, appreciating their mutual sense of humor.

“So … “ Karlie started again, averting her eyes from the singer.

“Now you wanna know why I go to such lengths? Why not get photographed with my actual partner?” Taylor asked boldly.

“Well, reason number one, I’m gay, and that’s not part of my image … yet. Number two, I’m single” she snort-laughed.

Karlie blushed. She did that a lot around the singer.

“Um, yeah, that’s what I was gonna ask” she said sheepishly.

Taylor grinned at her again.

“Well, now you know. And now it’s your turn” she smirked.

“What?” Karlie’s eyes went wide and she looked the singer in the face again.

“It’s your turn. I just told you I’m gay and single. It’s only fair if I get to know these things about you as well.”

“Oh ok. Ummm … same and same” Karlie laughed.

Now it was Taylor’s turn to blush.

“Oh … umm … great. Good to know” she stammered, averting her eyes from Karlie.

 _Good to know? Why are you so stupid, Taylor?_ She internally scolded herself.

She fidgeted around in her chair. She looked at her cup, but the coffee was already gone. She looked anywhere but Karlie, and an awkward tension started to build between them, not unlike the one at their first meeting at Club Red, if for a different reason.

For once, it was Karlie who saved the day by starting to talk about how her life in New York had helped her come out to her parents and how most of her friends were queer now as well, as opposed to high school where it had only been she and Derek.

Taylor eventually regained her composure again and the two had a deep conversation about coming out, the importance of a community and support from loved ones. Karlie told Taylor how she had only come out to her parents when she had her first girlfriend her freshman year, an exchange student from Germany called Antonia who had broken up with her when she left the states. Her parents had been supportive throughout it all. Taylor talked about being closeted in the country music scene, but didn’t mention any former girlfriends, and Karlie didn’t dare to ask. She was already thankful for how many personal things the singer shared with her to begin with.

Lunchtime came around and the two women decided to cook a light meal together to eat on the balcony, and to go for a walk on the beach afterwards. Both of them felt happy and relaxed around each other, and kept replaying their earlier conversation in their minds, despite not letting it show. While Taylor was almost sure she had a crush on the younger girl, Karlie was slowly starting to realize what the ever-present butterflies in her stomach meant. Neither of them knew how to go about their feelings, however.

Taylor insisted on playing scrabble, which caused endless amusement to Karlie, witnessing the older girl’s sudden competitiveness. She won every round and Karlie couldn’t help but find the singer’s victorious grin endearing. Taylor was in her element, in a world of words, where Karlie could hardly keep up. It didn’t bother her, though, as she knew that her strengths lied elsewhere.

The evening found them in the kitchen once again, preparing a light dinner.

“Do you want to listen to some music?” Taylor asked, connecting her phone to the portable speaker standing on the kitchen island.

“Sure” Karlie replied.

“What do you usually listen to?” Taylor asked, browsing her playlists.

Karlie blushed and stopped cutting the vegetable she had been preparing, then turned around to Taylor.

“Umm … you” she smirked.

“What?” Taylor asked, but then realized what Karlie meant.

“Oh. Nope, we’re not listening to my music. That’d be so weird. Besides, I’m on holiday” she laughed.

“So, anything else?”

Karlie remembered the special guests at her show in St Louis.

“Heartthrob?” she asked, hopefully.

“Good choice!” Taylor said excitedly, and the first notes of ‘Closer’ started blasting through the kitchen.

“I love this album! Makes me want to produce more pop songs myself” she stated and stood beside Karlie at the counter, helping her prepare dinner. Neither of them were too hungry, so they had opted for self-made veggie burgers and salad.

As they were eating on the balcony, each of them lost in their own thoughts, Taylor suddenly spoke up.

“Can I ask you something? I was wondering earlier when we talked about music” she said.

“Oh, sure”, Karlie replied and put the burger back on her plate, then took a sip of water from her glass.

“This is embarrassing, but … what’s your favorite song of mine?” Taylor asked and blushed a deep red.

Karlie found the question and Taylor’s blushing endearing and instead of answering, held the singer’s gaze until she could see Taylor squirming in her seat.

“Love story”, she finally replied and smirked.

She didn’t know where this sudden self-confidence came from, given the fact that she was usually the one to blush and feel awkward, but when she saw Taylor’s demeanor it gave her confidence, knowing the singer was flustered because of her.

“Really?” Taylor asked surprised, fidgeting with the cutlery next to her plate.

“Any particular reason?”

“Yeah, it was the first song of you that I remember hearing, when we were driving in the car with the whole family and it came on the radio, and I loved it and then when Fearless was released I bought the album and, well, now here I am” she laughed.

“Thank you, I appreciate that” Taylor said honestly and the two smiled at each other.

Karlie suddenly remembered how surreal this all was. At 16 years old, she had been just a teenager enjoying a song on the radio, and now at 21 she was staying over at that singer’s house and being friends with her. She realized they hadn’t had a conversation about the circumstances of their friendship yet, and with the aid of her new wave of self-confidence, she decided to ask.

“Do you think this is weird?” she asked, making a vague gesture with her hands.

Taylor narrowed her eyes and tilted her head to the side.

“What is?”

“That I’m just a fan, a random college kid, and you’re hanging out with me?” she clarified.

Taylor sighed.

“Karlie, I thought I had told you. I wouldn’t be doing this if I didn’t want to. I’m interested in you as a person, regardless of how we met. Yeah, the circumstances were a little weird and messy, but it’s fine with me. In the past few weeks I had felt like you had become more comfortable around me, is that not the case?” she asked seriously.

Karlie immediately backpedaled.

“No, no, that’s not what I’m saying. I am comfortable around you, Taylor. And as I’ve gotten to know you better I can now clearly see the difference between your private and public personality. And I’ve realized that we’re just two normal American girls hanging out, and I enjoy spending time with you. I just wasn’t sure if it was the same for you. I don’t know, I’m probably not making any sense …” she trailed off.

“No, I get what you’re saying. I understand. At first I had my doubts, especially because of my privacy, but I can see you are a good and honest person Karlie, and I trust you. And I don’t think this is weird at all, ok?” she smiled.

“Thank you” Karlie said softly and leaned over the table to squeeze Taylor’s arm.

“I’m happy to be here.”

They smiled at each other and ate the rest of their dinner in silence once more.

 

***

 

After the dishes were done the two women had initially planned on going outside again, but it had started raining lightly, so they opted for watching TV on the couch with a glass of wine each. Meredith joined them on the couch, but kept a distance. Karlie still felt weird that she was allowed to legally drink and after a few sips decided that red wine wasn’t for her, but she didn’t say anything and instead got herself a glass of water. She learned that Taylor was a huge wine fan, and after a while offered her own glass as well, which Taylor gratefully accepted.

The evening air was considerably cooler than during the day and both women had put on socks and a sweater before lounging on the couch. Yet Karlie found herself shivering, being hyper-aware of Taylor’s proximity. Their bodies weren’t touching, but only a couple of inches apart. Their legs bumped together each time one of them moved and the touch gave Karlie goosebumps.

They were watching the first season of Orange is the new black, a new Netflix show that Karlie had heard about, but not seen yet. In contrast, Taylor had already watched it twice and kept talking over the characters, explaining trivia about the show and cast to Karlie. Usually the younger girl would be annoyed and would want to just watch the show in peace, but she found Taylor’s rambling endearing. The more wine Taylor had, the more excited she got and the closer she moved towards Karlie on the couch, until their legs were squeezed against each other.

Karlie was all too aware of this and more importantly, completely sober, a circumstance she desperately wished she could change, but she didn’t dare get up from the couch and look at the fridge for beer. Taylor on the other hand was tipsy, but not drunk and while a voice in the back of her mind reminded her not to overwhelm the younger girl, she couldn’t help but seek Karlie’s touch. She felt drawn towards the tall brunette and the wine had loosened the inhibitions that restrained her during the day.

After two episodes and a much needed toilet break Meredith had left the room again to roam the house and Karlie had finally gotten a beer from the fridge, while Taylor had put out snacks from the kitchen cabinet and opted for water in order to not get drunk. She didn’t want to do anything she would regret. Nevertheless, the two resumed their previous position of sitting closely together, and as they continued watching the show Taylor gave a detailed explanation why Crazy Eyes was her favorite character so far and how she hoped she would get more screen time in the next seasons. All Karlie could do was smile and nod along.

Before long, Taylor had tired herself out from talking so much and scooted closer towards Karlie, resting her head on the girl’s right shoulder and lazily dragging her right arm over the girl’s torso.

“Is this ok?” she asked quietly and let out a yawn.

“Yeah” Karlie said, though her heart was beating so wildly that Taylor must have felt it, and her thoughts going a mile a minute. She willed herself to relax.

Not knowing what to do to reciprocate the sign of affection, she gently lay her hand on Taylor’s leg that was closest to her.

She could feel Taylor smiling into her shoulder as a response.

As the third episode neared its end, Taylor had repositioned herself so that she was now fully facing Karlie, cuddling the taller girl from the side and only watching the TV from the corner of her eyes. She buried her face in the crook of Karlie’s neck, just like she always did when the two women hugged. She secretly loved that Karlie was taller and stronger than her, and seeing the girl’s lanky body draped over her couch she was not able to resist seeking body contact. She was still a little tipsy, but clear enough to notice how Karlie didn’t seem to mind her touches and how she seemed comfortable. It made her feel warm inside despite the increasingly cool night air flowing in from the partially opened window.

When the episode ended, neither of them bothered to put on the next one, too comfortable in their position. Besides, it was getting late.

“Karlie?” Taylor mumbled sleepily.

“Yeah?” the younger replied, not being able to see Taylor’s face.

“When are you going to leave tomorrow? Don’t you want to stay one more night?”

Karlie grinned and gently stroked Taylor’s arm before responding.

“I’m leaving in the afternoon. And I’m afraid I can’t stay longer. Also I don’t want to overstay my welcome.”

Taylor mumbled something in response Karlie couldn’t understand, but she tightened her grip on the taller girl’s torso. They stayed like this for a while longer, just enjoying each other’s presence in silence. Karlie loved the feeling of Taylor’s warm skin on hers and realized that this was what she had wanted to do for a while now. It felt good being this close to the blonde woman, and their bodies seemed to fit perfectly. Karlie couldn’t help but notice how small and vulnerable Taylor looked in her arms and felt a strong need to protect the singer. She kept drawing patterns on Taylor’s leg, not being able to resist her soft skin.

When Karlie felt that it was getting harder to keep her eyes open by the minute, she gently whispered “Let’s go to sleep, Taylor” into the singer’s head. She reluctantly detached herself from Karlie, immediately missing her warmth. The two smiled at each other, then got up from the couch to tidy up the room and switch off the TV before going upstairs. In front of Karlie’s guest bedroom door, they hugged each other tightly for a while.

“Good night, Taylor” Karlie said softly when they separated.

Before turning around to go to her bedroom, Taylor placed a light kiss on Karlie’s cheek.

“Good night, Karlie.”

Both of them fell asleep that night thinking about each other, with only the soft sound of the rain hitting the roof interrupting the quiet night.


	12. Twelve

“Whew!” Kariann exhaled and plopped down on her new bed.

She closed her eyes for a moment, trying to calm down from the excitement of the day.

It was move-in day at Kimby’s and her college. Their parents had left just a few minutes earlier, having taken the twins to Chapel Hill by car with all their luggage and helped them get everything into their respective dorm rooms on the third floor of the building. Saying goodbye to their parents had been emotional, but she had been way too overwhelmed by her new environment to process anything properly. The twins had purposely chosen not to share a room in order to be able to adjust to their new lives better individually. Their rooms were across from each other however, so they would still have plenty of chances to see each other.

Kariann was glad that her roommate wasn’t there at the moment, though the girl had already moved in a while ago. All she knew was the girl’s name and that she was on the varsity soccer team, which was why she was already here as pre-season training had already started. The room had been extremely clean and tidy when Kariann had come in, and she wanted to clean up her belongings before her roommate came back to not make a bad impression. She giggled when she remembered what Kimby’s new room had looked like. Her twin’s roommate wasn’t there right now as well, but the room had been a mess and a half. She was glad she had gotten the tidier roommate.

When she was almost finished, the door suddenly opened and someone entered the room. Kariann turned around and saw a tan girl with long black hair and green eyes standing in the doorframe, a sports bag over her shoulder and wearing a white t-shirt and light blue shorts with the university’s logo on it.

The girl smiled at her warmly and outstretched her hand.

“Hey, you must be Kariann! It’s nice to meet you. Welcome to UNC! I’m Christen!” she said with a friendly voice.

Kariann shook her hand.

“Hey Christen, I’m Kariann. It’s nice to meet you too. I just got here, I’m trying to tidy up my stuff” she said, relieved that her new roommate seemed nice.

“No worries. I just got back from soccer practice, so I will be hanging out here a bit. If I can help with anything, let me know.”

“Thank you” Kariann said and smiled at the girl.

After Kariann had stored away her belongings as well as possible for now, the two girls sat on their beds at the opposite ends of the small room, making small talk and getting to know each other. Kariann learned that Christen was a freshman as well, wanted to major in communications and was originally from California, and hoped to play soccer professionally one day. Kariann didn’t know much about how all of the soccer stuff worked with drafts and national team camps and whatnot, but she figured she would learn about it sooner or later by talking to Christen. Just as she was telling Christen about her sisters, there was a knock on the door.

“Come in!” Christen shouted.

Inside came Kimby and a brunette girl who Kariann didn’t know.

“Tobin!” Christen said excitedly.

The girl named Tobin smiled at Christen, but then turned towards Kariann to introduce herself.

“Hi, I’m Tobin. I’m Christen’s teammate and Kimby’s roommate. You must be her sister?” she drawled out the words.

“Yeah, I’m Kariann. We’re twins. Nice to meet you” she responded and shook Tobin’s hand.

Then she introduced Kimby and Christen.

“You two don’t even look alike” Tobin stated.

The twins just grinned in response, being used to this statement.

“That’s good though, so we can actually tell you apart” Christen chimed in, making the others laugh.

Tobin sat down next to Christen, and Kimby next to Kariann, and the four girls easily sparked up a conversation. It was obvious already that Kimby and Tobin were the more outgoing of the group, while Kariann and Christen were the quieter ones. Once again Kariann was glad for her assigned roommate, enjoying a clean space and her peace and quiet.

Sitting opposite of the two teammates she was able to clearly hear their thoughts and after a while realized that the two teammates seemed to be crushing on each other; judging from how aware they both were at sitting next to each other, and how they both found each other cute.

_Oh dear, this is going to be fun_ , Kariann thought to herself, sheltering her thoughts from her twin sister as a precaution. She didn’t need the chatty girl accidentally spilling the beans before Tobin and Christen had figured it out themselves. Involuntarily knowing other people’s secrets was something she had learned not to treat lightly, and she felt a responsibility to never reveal how much she really knew.

“We’re going to the cafeteria later with a few friends, do you want to come?” Tobin asked, looking at the twins expectantly.

“Oh, sure, we’d love to” Kimby replied, appreciating the effort her roommate made to introduce them to people.

“Awesome! We can show you around a little!” Christen said excitedly.

Kimby and Tobin went back to their room after a few minutes, to change and maybe tidy up a little. Soon enough, Kariann and Christen could hear loud music blasting from their room. Kariann rolled her eyes. This was undeniably Kimby’s music, as ‘Sparks Fly’ could be heard at full volume. Christen just grinned at her, seemingly used to noise in the building. No one in the hallway seemed to bother either, as there were still lots of new students and their parents coming and going, carrying boxes and bags from the elevator to the rooms. Kariann suddenly noticed how hungry she was and was thankful to go to the cafeteria later.

As the music kept blasting through the hallway, Christen and Kariann could suddenly hear excited chatter from outside their door. They went out to see what the commotion was about. Kariann was beyond confused when she saw a girl she didn’t know standing in Kimby’s and Tobin’s room, excitedly talking to Kimby, but Christen burst out laughing.

“Looks like the Taylor Swift music has summoned Kelley!” she explained to Kariann, pointing at the girl and grinning.

They went into the room and Kimby introduced her.

“Kelley, this is my twin, Kariann. She’s Christen’s new roommate. Kimby, this is Kelley. She heard the music and came over, she said she’s a fan too! I already love her!” she giggled.

Kelley was shorter than the twins, had long brown hair and countless freckles in her face. She smiled welcomingly.

“Nice to meet you, Kelley. And yep, we are big T-Swift fans. Are you on the soccer team too?” Kariann asked, noticing how the girl was dressed in the same attire as Christen.

“That is correct” Kelley stated and grinned widely.

“Is everyone on this floor on the soccer team?” Kimby joked.

Kelley and Christen laughed.

“No, the team’s freshmen are split up onto different floors. My roommate Jewell is on the varsity basketball team” Kelley explained.

“Wow” Kariann said.

She hadn’t imagined to meet so many student athletes. She didn’t do any sports herself besides running and yoga sometimes, but she did enjoy watching sports. She hoped to have an opportunity to see a game during the year. When she expressed this wish, Christen and Kelley nodded excitedly.

“That’d be awesome! We will let you know when our home games are!” they promised.

“Alright! Time to go eat! We will meet the others downstairs!” Tobin chimed in, and the group made their way to the lobby, where three more student athletes were waiting. Kimby and Kariann were introduced, and everyone seemed friendly.

The soccer players pointed out different things to the twins as they made their way across the campus towards the cafeteria. It was already around 2pm, but the place was bursting with freshmen and their families who had wanted to eat together before saying their goodbyes. Kariann remembered how she had only seen her parents off less than two hours earlier, it already seemed so far away.

They found an empty table in the middle of the cafeteria after they had all gotten something to eat and drink. Kelley had given the twins a long explanation on how the chocolate milk here was not as good as at the café down the road from the campus and how inconvenient this was to her as the other place was further away, to which the others had just rolled their eyes. They seemed used to their teammate’s antics, though it was clear that everyone adored the freckled girl and didn’t mind her rambling.

In the loud, crowded cafeteria Kariann couldn’t hear anyone’s thoughts except Kimby’s, but she didn’t mind. She was sitting next to a girl named Megan, who she was making small talk with. Across from her were Tobin and Christen, next to them the other two whose names she had already forgotten, but who seemed to be a couple. Kelley and Kimby were sitting next to each other on her side and had picked up their conversation about Taylor Swift from earlier. Somehow Kariann and Megan managed to get dragged into the conversation after a while.

“You guys were at the show in St Louis?” Kelley exclaimed.

“That’s awesome! I was at the one in Atlanta! I’m from Georgia originally” she explained.

“Really? What was your favorite costume? Who was the special guest at your show again?” Kimby asked excitedly.

“Oh God, I loved all the performances. The opening song, State of grace, was so cool. I remember she performed a song with Ed Sheeran” Kelley said.

She seemed to be lost in thought for a while, but then she perked up.

“Oh wait! St Louis! Wasn’t that the show that one video was taken at? I don’t know if you use social media much, but maybe you’ve seen it? The one where Taylor fell down the stairs in the middle of the stage during the last song and people kept saying how she was hovering instead of falling and how weird it was?” she rambled.

Megan looked confused, but the twins’ hearts sank into their proverbial boots.

They didn’t have to look at each other to know what the other one was thinking.

_Not this again._

Kimby quickly recovered.

“Oh, yeah we saw that, but we didn’t really know what all the fuss was about. I mean we were at the show, but we didn’t notice anything. People just love to create drama around anything involving Taylor” she shrugged, playing it cool, but wiping her sweaty palms on her pants under the table.

“You always take these things way too serious, Kelley” Megan scolded.

“Trust me, not everyone is as obsessed as you are.”

Kelley looked offended, but let it go.

“Ok fine. I was just curious. But you’re right, homegirl always has way too much drama going on, and I can’t always believe what I read. Like she’s supposedly dating that British guy? Ha, never” Kelley continued.

The twins just smiled and nodded at their new friend.

The conversation went on towards other topics soon enough, and the twins were able to relax again. In the backs of their minds, however, they couldn’t stop thinking about what Kelley had said. They had never wanted to hear about the incident ever again, yet here they were, confronted with someone who had seen the video and took interest in it. All that on their first day on campus.

_We really made a mess there_ , they silently concluded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!
> 
> I know this is a Kaylor fic, but a little background Preath has never hurt anyone :P  
> Let's play a game called "How many WoSo players can you recognize in this fic"?  
> Despite the obvious ones in this chapter, two minor characters in the previous chapters have also been WoSo players, can you find them? :P  
> Let me know in the comments :)


	13. Thirteen

Karlie stood behind the wide window wall, enchanted by the view. She took out her phone and took multiple pictures. She was standing in a suite of the 11th floor of an expensive hotel in NYC, overlooking Central Park. She couldn’t stop looking at the city that she had now called her home for two years. She thought she could make out her neighborhood in the distance, but she wasn’t sure about it.

The tall student was waiting for Taylor, who was about to be there any minute. She had been a little early as always when it came to meeting Taylor, but one of Taylor’s security guards had recognized her in the lobby of the hotel and invited her to wait inside the suite. She was happy that the man trusted her enough; he had assured her that Taylor wouldn’t mind and that she would probably even get mad if he made her wait in the lobby all alone.

The suite was, once again, bigger than Karlie’s apartment, but she had almost gotten used to being in such glamorous spaces when she was with Taylor. She still preferred her small cozy apartment, but she didn’t get as overwhelmed anymore as when she had visited Taylor in Rhode Island the week before. The room Karlie was in was flooded with daylight from the window side, and it had a dark hardwood floor. There was a wooden dining table with dark wooden chairs on one side of the room and an arrangement of a small, light gray couch and two armchairs in the same color and style around a low wooden table on the other side. Karlie noticed that some of Taylor’s clothes and her bag were lying around the couch; the singer must have not had much time here before she had left.

Karlie could hear voices coming from the hallway, and as she turned around Taylor walked into the suite. Her face lit up at seeing the blonde woman and she smiled her wide signature smile. Taylor returned the big, genuine smile and quickly approached the student. The hugged each other tightly.

“Hey you” Taylor said and squeezed Karlie tightly.

“Hey you” Karlie said back and laughed.

“Thank you for coming by on such a short notice” Taylor said, separating from Karlie and looking into her eyes.

Karlie’s green eyes were endlessly fascinating to the singer, and her gaze lingered.

“Of course” Karlie replied, not averting her gaze from Taylor’s blue eyes either.

She laughed and reached for the singer’s face.

“What did they do with your eyebrows? You have glitter everywhere” she giggled.

Taylor’s heart started racing at the touch, but she did her best to keep her cool.

“I know” she said with fake-annoyance in her voice.

“The things they do to you at photo-shoots. But it went really well, you will like the results” she smirked.

“Can’t I see them now?” Karlie begged playfully.

“No, sorry. You gotta wait like everyone else” Taylor laughed.

Karlie pouted, but then couldn’t stop the grin from creeping onto her face.

“I’m glad your day went well” she stated.

Taylor nodded, then gestured towards Karlie to follow her into the kitchen to grab something to drink. She wasn’t sure how to act around the younger girl after they had cuddled on the couch at her Rhode Island home, but there had not been any awkwardness the next day, so she just hoped it would stay that way.

“Yeah, it went well. Apart from the paparazzi that followed me from the photoshoot to the hotel. They were so obnoxious. I could hardly enter the lobby hadn’t it been for my security guards.”

Karlie’s eyes went wide.

“Really? No one was there when I arrived earlier.”

“Yeah, it happens sometimes, especially because I haven’t been in the public eye as much as during the tour this summer, so they are looking for something, anything to write about. They’re probably still waiting outside, thinking I’ll come out again tonight” she laughed drily.

“What do you want to drink?” she asked.

“I’m sorry, Taylor. You don’t deserve this. Oh, and water is fine. I worked out today, so I don’t want to drink any alcohol or soft drinks” Karlie answered.

“Of course” Taylor playfully rolled her eyes, but handed Karlie a bottle of water.

She grabbed a bottle of diet coke for herself and the two women made their way back into the living room towards the couch.

“Sorry for the mess I left here” Taylor laughed as she put her clothes away so they could sit on the couch.

Karlie noticed that the singer looked tired. She was dressed in comfortable clothes, but still had the make-up and glitter on her face from the photoshoot she had had today. She was thankful that Taylor had invited her to visit after her busy day, despite the fact that Taylor was only in the city for one night.

“Oh, I need to tell you about what the twins texted me today” she started.

“Oh, they already moved in to college, right? How are they doing?” Taylor asked.

Karlie once again felt a warm feeling in her chest at the fact that Taylor remembered what was going on in her sisters’ lives despite only having met them twice.

“Yeah, they did. Their roommates are nice and they’re apparently on the soccer team, so they’ve already been introduced to half the team” Karlie laughed.

Then she got more serious and told Taylor about the girl who lived on the same floor as the twins and who was also a fan and had asked them about the video. Taylor listened attentively, then sighed.

“Yeah, it’s probably not a big deal, the girl is just a fan and the video is not being talked about anymore by the general public. I will nevertheless talk to someone from the CA - my uncle Patrick or Mr Edwards, maybe. Thank you for telling me” she said.

There was a short silence between the two women.

“I didn’t know Kariann could hear thoughts. I had imagined it more like reading thoughts? I don’t know” Taylor said after a while, lost in thought.

They all had briefly talked about their skills at the meeting, but Taylor was unfamiliar with almost all skills she didn’t possess herself.

“Yeah, you have to be careful sometimes” Karlie chuckled.

“But she’s become a good keeper of secrets. And she taught me how to shelter your thoughts so others can’t hear them. It’s very useful. She said the chairpersons at our meeting all had their thoughts completely sheltered, so she had no idea what they were thinking” she added.

“You can shelter your thoughts? Now that’s something I need to learn” Taylor laughed.

“I can’t really do much besides the invisibility for like a minute and telekinesis on small objects. I am still in awe how the twins managed to lift me into the air during the concert. That was impressive and must have cost them so much effort and energy. After I made that photo of your dog appear at your guest room in Rhode Island I had a headache for half an hour” she giggled.

“Yeah, the twins together are really something” Karlie said.

She wondered how much she was allowed to disclose to Taylor, but then put that worry to the back of her mind. Taylor could read the CA’s book anytime, and Karlie didn’t know anything that wasn’t written in there anyways.

“Our grandma on our mother’s side, Elizabeth, was a conjurer as well. She passed away a few years ago. But her telekinesis skills were awesome. And she could shape-shift like no big deal. When the twins were born, she immediately knew that they possessed skills, unlike Kristine and I. She was so happy because she hadn’t passed on any skills towards her own children” Karlie smiled fondly at the memory of her grandmother.

“Yeah, it’s this weird allocation of skills in my family, too” Taylor said and took the last sip of her diet coke, then put the bottle on the table.

“There’s my uncle and I, and then only ancestors who have already passed away. And I only got so few skills” she laughed.

“I am always amazed by how many cool things others can do that I didn’t even know were possible. When I was on the phone with Mr Edwards the other week he mentioned something about being able to make anything appear or disappear, no matter what. I’m not talking books or picture frames. He told me how he got stranded somewhere once and just got himself a car out of thin air” Taylor continued.

Karlie laughed.

“Yeah, but trust me, people like him have had to practice so much and they have so much responsibility. It’s why they’re in such high ranking positions within the association” she pointed out.

“Yeah, you’re right” Taylor admitted.

“I don’t get why we’re called ‘conjurers’ though, that sounds so lame. Why not magician, or illusionist?” she giggled.

“That sounds like you’re pulling bunnies out of a hat” Karlie laughed in response. They both grinned at each other.

Karlie suddenly perked up.

“Did I ever tell you that my necklace was a gift from my grandma as well?” she asked and fumbled with the accessory around her neck.

“No, really? I mean I have obviously noticed it, but I didn’t know that” Taylor replied.

“Yeah, my sisters and I each have one, each with the letter K on it” she said softly.

The two continued talking about their families, both feeling their bond becoming stronger. After a while Karlie noticed that it was getting dark outside, and that Taylor probably wanted to rest. The singer reluctantly agreed to let Karlie go and go to sleep early herself, having to leave again early the next morning. She insisted on walking her to the lobby.

When they left the suite and stepped into the hallway, the security guard standing in front of the door made them stop.

“Where are you going, Miss Swift?” he asked.

“To the lobby to see my friend off” Taylor answered, confused.

“Miss Swift, unfortunately there are still paparazzi waiting outside the hotel. It would not be safe for you to go downstairs” he said.

“Really?” Taylor groaned.

Karlie just stood there, not knowing what to say.

“What about Karlie? I don’t want her to be bothered by paparazzi when she leaves the hotel” Taylor stated.

The security guard thought for a while, then pulled out his phone.

“I will call someone to accompany her to the backdoor” he said determinedly.

“It’s best if you say your goodbyes here and you immediately return to the suite, Miss Swift.”

Taylor sighed and sent Karlie an apologetic look.

“It’s ok” Karlie said softly.

“Let’s do what he says.”

“I’m so sorry” Taylor said and hugged the younger girl.

“It’s not your fault” Karlie replied.

Neither of them wanted to let go, but they felt awkward in the presence of the security guard, and they heard footsteps approaching them. They separated and saw another one of Taylor’s security guards coming towards them quickly. It was the same one who had recognized Karlie in the lobby earlier, and Karlie was glad about that.

“I’m sorry for the inconvenience, Miss Swift. I will accompany Miss Kloss towards the back door so she can get out safely” he said.

“Thank you” Taylor said and smiled at the man.

She squeezed Karlie’s hand, then let go.

“Text me when you get home” she said.

“Will do” Karlie promised.

Taylor watched the student and the security guard walk away, then thanked the man standing in front of her door and walked inside again. She was scolding herself internally.

_How could I ever think that she wouldn’t be affected by my life? None of this is normal, and all we want to have is a normal friendship, or whatever this will lead to. I should not be dragging her into this. I’m so selfish. But I can’t help developing feelings for her. I need to figure out what to do._

She went to the bathroom to wipe off her make-up and brush her teeth, then went to bed. Even after she got Karlie’s text that she had made it home safely, she couldn’t stop thinking about the circumstances of their relationship and how it made her wish that she was a normal college kid, too.

 

***

 

On the other hand, had Taylor been a normal college kid, she wouldn’t have been able to do what she did the following week. She was the guest at a radio show and had told Karlie to listen and not to miss it.

Naturally, Karlie sat excitedly on her bed next to her phone that was playing the radio show. When Taylor was announced, she squealed and felt her heart beating faster. She felt like a fangirl, but she didn’t care. She thought about it more in the way that a friend of hers was live on a popular radio station. The announcer introduced Taylor and they talked a little about the success of her Red tour and how she planned on playing shows in Australia sometime next year.

Karlie felt excited when they started talking about how Taylor would perform three songs acoustically during the session. Soon enough, the interview was paused and Taylor performed ‘All too well’, and it made Karlie’s heart swell. She loved that song so much. After the song the interview continued, and Karlie listened attentively. She perked up as Taylor announced the next song.

“This song is one of my older ones actually, but it’s the favorite song of someone special, and I want to dedicate it to them. I’m so happy that they came into my life.”

Then ‘Love story’ started playing through Karlie’s phone’s speakers. She couldn’t believe it. Was this for her? Had Taylor been talking about her? Impossible. But she had just told Taylor how this song was her favorite, and she was fairly new in Taylor’s life as well. Could it be? Karlie could feel her emotions getting the best of her, and lied down on her bed, clutching a pillow to her chest. She tried to make sense of who Taylor could have meant, but no one came up. There were surely people who would think it was for her ‘boyfriend’, but Karlie knew better than that. It had to be for her. A tear escaped her eye, and she quickly wiped it away. She had cried to Taylor’s song often enough, but never for this reason. The thought made her grin.

The song ended and the interview continued. Karlie could hardly keep up with what was being said as the thoughts in her mind ran wild.

“So, what song do you have left for us, Taylor?” the announcer asked after a while.

“Oh, this is another special song. I want to dedicate this to the same person” Taylor chuckled nervously.

Karlie thought she was going to pass out.

“This is not my song, actually, it’s a cover, but it’s on the platinum edition of my album Fearless” Taylor explained.

“This song is called ‘Untouchable’.”

Taylor started playing, but Karlie could hardly hear it through the tears that had started to spill over.

 _Oh my god_ , she thought.

_What is happening? This is for me? She didn’t say it’s for me, but she kinda did. I’m so … does this mean she likes me? We did cuddle on her couch. I totally thought my feelings were one-sided. Oh my God. Did this really happen. What is happening? Is this her way of telling me her feelings? There is no other way to interpret ‘Untouchable’._

She switched off the radio once the show was over and just lay on her bed in silence in deep thought.

After a while she felt her phone buzzing next to her and looked at the new message.

 

**Taylor**

Hey, did you listen to my radio session? Hope you liked my choice of songs ;-) xo

_3:12 pm_


	14. Fourteen

The humming sound from the air conditioner was accompanied by the noise of the cicadas outside and the shuffling of feet within the house. The men and women present took their seats and waited for the owner of the house to enter the room. They were inside the spacious living room and had arranged every chair of the house into a circle. There were still a few seats empty as some attendees were always running late. The door opened and a tall man with pale skin and a balding head came in.

“Thank you all for coming today” the man said towards the other in the room after he had taken a seat close to the door.

“We’re not as many today, but I understand it’s the summer. We will just have to see how far we can get today” he announced.

The three men and two women each mumbled something as a response.

“So, has anyone made any discoveries since our meeting last month? Did we find out more about the hotel in Peru that burnt down last year, any articles, or hear-say?” he dived right into the topic.

A corpulent, dark-skinned man spoke up.

“I read the online articles we’ve found so far again that were in Spanish. But I didn’t get any new insight. I believe we are on the right path, though. Something was fishy there. An old hotel burns down in the middle of the night, almost every room occupied, and no sprinklers, yet every single guest was able to get out safely aside from inhaling a bit of smoke and there were large amounts of forge-water inside the rooms despite the fact that the fire-fighters arrived late. No, there was definitely something going on” he explained.

“Yeah, if there are people who can control fire, why shouldn’t there also be people who can control water? I also believe that one or more guests had those magic powers, and used them. Too bad there were no documents left about the guests who stayed that night” a small blonde woman agreed.

“Thank you for your insight, Mr Jackson” the house owner said towards the dark-skinned man.

“Please continue researching this topic. If our theory is correct, we have to look out more for the manipulation of the elements. Our goal is to find out what these people can do, and then find out how they do it” he continued.

The conversation went on about the manipulation of the elements and how to best study the topic. After a few minutes, a man came stumbling into the room without knocking and hastily took a seat.

“I’m sorry if I’m late, Mr Schulzenberger, I got into a small traffic jam on the way here” he said towards the house-owner, wiping sweat from his forehead.

“I just don’t understand why we can’t have this meeting in Atlanta even once” he added, but it sounded like he did not really expect an answer.

“You know why, Mr O’Hara” the house-owner said with a sharp tone in his voice.

“We are in the middle of nowhere and that’s the best place to do research like ours” he explained.

“We were just talking about the hotel incident in Peru” he then continued to the newly-arrived man, who did not look excited at this statement.

“Again? I have something new to tell you all, that’s way more exciting” he said and grinned at the others.

Every attendee suddenly had a surprised look on their face and looked at Mr O’Hara expectantly.

He pulled his laptop out of his bag and started it.

“So, I know this isn’t something any of us pay attention to, so we could have easily missed it if it weren’t for my niece. Around three weeks ago she showed me a video of a concert where an incident happened that apparently sparked an online discussion at the time. The attention has long died down, but that doesn’t make it any less interesting. My niece loves this singer so she is very invested in these things” he looked up at the others who listened attentively.

He clicked on a bookmarked link and selected the video he wanted to show.

“The Wi-Fi in this house is still bad” he grumbled, but then continued.

“I will play you the video and then have you decide for yourself.”

When they watched the video, the small blonde woman let out a scream as she saw how the singer hovered down the stairs in the middle of the stage instead of falling down as it had looked like only a second earlier.

“This! This is something!” she said in a high-pitched voice, pointing at the screen.

“The woman is hovering! This is unnatural! She must be a witch!” she continued.

Mr Schulzenberger gestured towards her to calm down.

“Well, this certainly looks like it could have something to do with magic. What was the discussion about?” he asked towards Mr O’Hara.

The small man with the sunburnt skin summarized the internet discussion he had read to the others.

“So either the singer hovered down the stairs by her own will, or someone from the audience wanted to keep her from falling” a brunette woman who had not yet spoken, concluded.

“This fits with what we know so far about the magicians. Someone wanted to help her” she added.

“Nonsense!” the small blonde woman spoke up again.

“It is unnatural. If it was God’s will that an accident like this one or the fire in Peru happened, they should let it happen” she said agitatedly.

“Mrs Johnson, we’ve talked about this. We are not a religious organization and strictly dedicated to our research on neutral grounds” Mr Schulzenberger warned.

The woman tightly pressed her lips together and fidgeted in her chair, but didn’t reply.

Mr O’Hara continued.

“As I’ve told you before, my family does not take our research seriously, so I tend not to talk about it with them. My niece showed me this, but she was making fun of me while doing so, and so I brushed the incident off as if it wasn’t important. But I re-watched it later and as you can see, it seems to be of relevance to us.”

His eyes scanned the other attendees in the room.

“So, how should we go about this?” he asked.

The question sparked a discussion on how to best approach the issue at hand. Everyone agreed to dig deeper into the topic, while also still researching the Peru incident as best as they could. They were a small group with limited resources, but everyone was motivated to bring results to their next meeting. Nearly two hours later, the meeting was dismissed and the attendees went towards their cars that were parked under the trees in the long driveway to go back to their families and go about the rest of their weekends. They were aware that no one else in their lives took them seriously, but neither of them seemed to mind. Outside, the noise of the cicadas was as obtrusive as ever, and the sun continued to burn down on the small southern town.


	15. Fifteen

“Meredith! Come here!” Karlie cooed as she saw the cat coming out of the house and onto the balcony where she and Taylor were sitting in the lounge chairs. She stretched out her arm, and Meredith approached her.

“Hello baby” she continued talking to the cat as she scratched her ears. Meredith purred, and Karlie picked her up into her lap.

Taylor just stared at the scene in front of her with her mouth open. She quickly reached for her phone that was lying on the table to take a few pictures.

“I still cannot believe this. Karlie, you must be a cat whisperer. Why does she love you?” she said in bewilderment.

“Because we’re buddies” Karlie grinned.

“Right, Meredith?” she asked towards the cat.

Taylor rolled her eyes. She played annoyed, but in reality she loved that her cat and Karlie got along so well. She figured that Meredith must sense how much of a positive effect Karlie’s presence had on the singer.

It was another beautiful summer day in Rhode Island, and Karlie was visiting for the second time before her classes started the next week. The two women sat in their usual spot on the balcony, drinking coffee and talking. Karlie had arrived earlier in the day and would stay for two nights. Taylor was beyond nervous, more so than the last time.

She had every reason to be, and Karlie was just as nervous, even though she didn’t let it show. After Taylor’s appearance on the radio show and the subsequent text message, to which Karlie had genuinely replied how much she had loved it, they had become flirtier with each other during their texts and FaceTime calls. Now that they were seeing each other in person again for the first time, they were both self-conscious about the way they acted around each other.

They had exchanged long, tight hugs before and there had always been little touches and looks, but now they had started to increase the amount of those. Neither of them knew how to talk about what was between them, however, and hoped the other one would be braver and make the first move. Taylor was still debating with herself if it was really fair to Karlie to be dragged into her less than normal life in this way.

 

***

 

The afternoon found them in their other usual spot in Taylor’s mansion – the kitchen. They wanted to bake cookies together, however a discussion on what kind of cookies to bake had ensued. Taylor wanted to go for traditional chocolate chip cookies, while Karlie swore Taylor had to try her healthy oatmeal cookies. She insisted they were a hit among her family and friends and that she had started spelling the word cookie with a ‘K’. Taylor just rolled her eyes at that, but then gave in, letting Karlie take over command.

As Taylor went through her drawers and cabinets to find the ingredients Karlie had instructed her they needed, she turned towards the taller girl with an apologetic look, but then started laughing.

“Ok, I was gonna say we’re out of baking soda, but Karlie, you look ridiculous in my apron” she giggled as she saw what the student had put over her clothes.

Karlie ignored the last statement.

“We’re out of baking soda? We’re in this huge house, there are three different brands of margarine in your fridge, but there’s no baking soda?” she exclaimed in a fake-annoyed voice, gesturing wildly.

“And they say I’m the dramatic one” Taylor said sarcastically.

Karlie grinned in response.

“Rule number one, always have every ingredient you might need for kookies in your house” Karlie stated.

“Rule number two” Taylor interrupted, “this is not the first time this has happened, and I have a simple solution.”

“What … oh yeah” Karlie realized what Taylor meant before she could finish her question.

“Is that allowed?” she asked carefully.

“The twins don’t do it?” Taylor asked curiously.

“Nope, mom doesn’t allow it” Karlie laughed.

“But yeah, it’s ok. It’s just a baking ingredient. Yeah it’s for our convenience, but it’s not like it means we’re never going grocery shopping again and ruin the economy” Taylor said drily.

“Alright” Karlie said nervously. These things still made her uncomfortable sometimes, despite having grown up with the twins. Seeing Taylor actually use her skills was still new to her.

Taylor sat down at one of the bar stools at the kitchen island and started staring at the table in front of her. Karlie held her breath. After a minute or so, a small orange package appeared at the spot Taylor was staring at. She looked up and rubbed her temples, then picked up the package. Karlie’s heart was beating wildly in her chest like she had just witnessed a dangerous stunt, but she remembered to breathe again.

“Oh dang, it’s only half-full” Taylor laughed as she opened the package.

“Why am I so bad at this? And now I’ll have a headache again. We should’ve gone to the store” she grumbled.

Karlie laughed. She found Taylor’s reaction endlessly endearing.

They were finally able to start preparing the kookies, and after they were done and had cooled down, Taylor had to admit that they were really good. She promised to never doubt Karlie’s baking skills again and to let her be in charge of baking from now on. Karlie somehow felt proud of herself for that.

 

***

 

Taylor couldn’t remember the last time she had felt this relaxed around someone she had known for such a relatively short time. She enjoyed being around the tall brunette, even if they didn’t do anything special. She loved how they had just clicked and how their conversations were never boring. They could talk about deep, personal stuff just as well as about nonsense, and they always made each other laugh. Karlie’s laughter was her new favorite sound and it made her want to write a thousand songs about it, just like the girl’s smile and green eyes. Once Taylor had broken through Karlie’s shell of shyness and slight awkwardness, the girl had revealed her quirky and fun personality that the singer had started to adore. She still had doubts in the back of her mind whether it would end well if she decided to be bolder about her feelings, but she couldn’t help but want to try. Karlie had that effect on her.

The evening was still warm and the sun was about to set. Despite the ocean being on the eastern side, there was a small spot at the beach on Taylor’s property where one could see the sun setting over the water, and that’s where she took Karlie. They brought a picnic blanket to sit on, more blankets to wrap around themselves for when it got colder, as well as snacks and drinks. Both were hyper-aware of the romantic connotations this activity had, but neither of them minded. This was what they both wanted, even though they hadn’t communicated it clearly yet.

Before long Taylor had managed to cuddle close to Karlie again just the way she had done while watching TV the other night, only this time Karlie was less nervous. They watched the sun disappear behind the horizon in silence. Despite the sun being gone, there was still daylight left and the sky was a beautiful shade of orange, yellow and red.

Taylor had started playing with Karlie’s hair, which caused the younger girl to erupt in goosebumps.

“Your hair has gotten longer. Are you growing it out?” Taylor asked after a while.

“Yeah” Karlie answered and smiled.

“I wish I had the courage to cut my hair” Taylor mumbled.

Karlie didn’t know what to say to that.

“I’m sure it would look lovely” she simply stated and could feel Taylor smile into her shoulder in response.

A comfortable silence settled over them again, both content to be in the presence of each other.

Suddenly Taylor shifted so that she was facing Karlie while still sitting closely with one of her legs draped over the other girl’s lap. Karlie looked at Taylor, and felt her heart beating out of her chest when she realized how close their faces were. They studied each other’s faces carefully, neither of them creating more distance between them. Karlie could see Taylor look at her lips and swallow thickly. Karlie’s heart started beating even faster, and she was sure the older girl could feel it.

Then they made eye contact, both of them getting lost in each other’s eyes. Taylor noticed how dilated Karlie’s pupils were despite their surroundings not being completely dark yet. She also noticed how green the girl’s eyes really were and thought she could sink and drown and die within them any moment. Meanwhile, Karlie thought the same about Taylor’s blue eyes. They kept their little staring contest going for a few minutes, neither wanting nor even being able to move.

Karlie averted her gaze from Taylor’s eyes and looked down at her lips. She wanted to kiss the singer so badly, but something was holding her back. She didn’t have the courage to make the next move. While she was still debating in her head what to do, she suddenly felt Taylor closing the distance and then her soft lips on her own. It sent a jolt through her whole body, and she forgot to breathe. The kiss was over as soon as it had started, but Karlie felt frozen in her spot. Only when she felt Taylor create space between them and look at her with a questioning, begging expression on her face, she felt the blood rush back to her brain and started moving again. She smiled at Taylor, then reached her hand out towards the singer’s neck so she could pull her in for a second kiss. This one was just as sweet and soft as their first one, but it lasted longer now that both of them knew they wanted this. Taylor repositioned herself once again so that she was now straddling Karlie’s lap in order to be able to kiss her better. They kept kissing each other for several minutes until both their smiles were growing too wide to continue.

“I’ve wanted to do this for a while” Taylor whispered and stroked Karlie’s cheek.

“Hmm” Karlie hummed in response and kissed the singer’s forehead.

They separated again and smiled at each other, no other words were needed.

They stayed like this for a while, until Taylor suddenly remembered where they were, and that it had gotten quite dark.

“Come on, let’s go inside” she said softly and stood up.

“My security guards are probably not thrilled that we’re still out here” she giggled.

“I hope they didn’t see us” she smirked.

Karlie blushed. She hadn’t thought about that.

“Don’t worry, they know how to keep their secrets” Taylor reassured the other girl as she was packing up their belongings.

“Yeah” Karlie just responded, her brain not processing her thoughts properly yet after what had just happened.

They spent the rest of the night making out on the couch, familiarizing themselves with each other in this new way. Before they went to sleep in their separate rooms that night, they agreed to talk about the new developments the next day and to take things slow. Both of them fell asleep that night with a smile on their faces, happy about the new direction their relationship had taken.

 

***

 

“I’d like a coffee and a grilled focaccia with antipasti, please” Karlie ordered and grinned at the waitress.

Jourdan duly wrote the order down on her memo pad, then grinned back.

“And for you, Miss?” she asked towards Cara, who was trying hard not to laugh at the situation.

“I’d like a latte macchiato and a tuna sandwich” the brunette girl made her order.

Jourdan wrote the order down as well, then burst out laughing.

A man who was sitting at the next table looked at the group curiously, probably thinking Jourdan was being unprofessional.

“I’m so glad you guys are here, but this is weird, God” Jourdan snorted.

Cara and Karlie laughed as well.

“Now bugger off Dunn, go do your job” the British girl waved towards the girl in faked arrogance.

Jourdan grinned at her friends once more, then went towards the counter again.

It was the second week of classes, and the two friends had finally fulfilled their promise to visit Jourdan at her workplace. The place was similar to their usual café, cozy and not too big, and mostly visited by students.

Karlie already felt like she needed another holiday. She was back on her full schedule with going to her classes, doing homework and additionally tutoring freshmen classes. This was her junior year, and it was already just as busy as she had feared. Nevertheless, she did not complain because at the end of the day, she loved what she did.

Her stay at Rhode Island already felt far away and like a dream. When she was bored in class, she secretly looked at the photos on her phone that she and Taylor had taken together. They still texted every day and FaceTimed regularly, but the nature of their relationship had changed. After their kiss, they had talked about it the next day, both being honest with each other. They had decided to take things slow and to not give a name to the new development yet, but had both admitted that their feelings were more than platonic. The rest of her stay Karlie had felt like she was on cloud nine, and time had passed way too quickly. She already missed Taylor so much it hurt.

Their orders arrived, and Jourdan quickly sat down next to Cara on the couch.

“Quick, I have five minutes, fill me in on everything that happened” she hastily said towards Karlie in a low voice.

The tall girl sighed. She had of course told her friends she had been staying at Taylor’s house again, but she and Taylor had agreed not to tell anyone about the new developments for now.

“It was amazing!” Karlie said excitedly.

“We baked cookies, I got to pet Meredith, and we had a really fun time” she smiled.

“That’s all?” Cara chimed in.

“What did you do all day?”

Karlie willed herself not to blush.

“What do you mean? We spent lots of time in the kitchen baking and cooking, we sat outside on the balcony a lot, and we took walks around town. I went for a run on the beach every morning. It was a quiet, relaxing time” she explained.

“Sounds really great” Jourdan said genuinely.

“I still cannot believe this is really happening, but I’m happy for you. At the end of the day, it shouldn’t matter how you two met, it’s important that you did and now are friends” she continued.

Karlie smiled at her friend.

“What did Kimby and Kariann say?” Cara asked.

“Oh boy, they are still freaking out about it, but like, in a good way. They want to know everything, but obviously I’m not telling them all the details, that would be unfair to Taylor. But the other day Taylor texted them a picture of Meredith and me and they haven’t stopped talking about it yet” Karlie laughed.

Cara grinned in response.

“I can understand that.”

Just then, a familiar figure approached their table.

“Derek!” Cara exclaimed.

“You’re late!”

Derek plopped down on the empty chair opposite of Cara.

“Geez, sorry, some of us are busy” he rolled his eyes dramatically, then laughed.

“Besides, my college does not happen to be around the corner.”

“Whatever” Cara said playfully.

“Karlie already told us everything, sorry buddy” she continued and smirked.

“Sorry Karlie, you’re gonna have to repeat yourself” Derek gave his friend an apologetic look, but grinned at her.

“Alright, I have to get back to work. What do you want to eat, Derek?” Jourdan announced, and Derek placed his order. Jourdan went back behind the counter.

Karlie shook her head at her friends’ banter. She was lucky to have them, even if she couldn’t tell them everything she wanted to … yet. She had no idea where life would take Taylor and her, but she was excited for it, and hoped to one day not have to keep everything so secret.

The friends spent the rest of the afternoon talking and laughing together, and Karlie was grateful for this little bit of normalcy within the mess that her life had become.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The chapter everyone has been waiting for ;)
> 
> Thank you for sticking with this story! We are about halfway through. I am ahead with writing and expect this story to have approximately 30 chapters in total.
> 
> Thank you for the comments and likes, it means a lot to me!


	16. Sixteen

The air outside was still warm, but the leaves had already started to change color. Kimby and Kariann had settled into their new life quite well. They enjoyed their classes and life on campus. A couple of weeks into the semester they spent an evening in their floor’s shared kitchen with their new friends.

“I don’t think I’ve ever cooked for this many people at once” Kimby groaned.

“I probably completely miscalculated the amount of pasta we need.”

She was standing at the stove preparing dinner. Next to her Tobin stood at the sink washing the dishes from the previous days. Despite the strict dorm rules, the kitchen was always messy. They were all responsible for the mess together, however, so no one ever complained.

Christen, Kelley and Kariann were sitting at the table in the middle of the room, talking about the upcoming home game. More specifically, Kelley was talking and the others were nodding along.

“I saw videos of their defense the other day” Kelley grumbled, talking about their opponent team.

“That’s gonna be a hard match.”

“I know” Christen agreed.

“Let’s just try to get one point and then look past the game” she said.

“Are you guys coming?” she asked towards her roommate.

“Sure”, Kariann confirmed.

Tobin was done washing the dishes and started placing plates and cutlery in front of everyone. When she reached Christen, she squeezed her shoulder and smiled at her. Christen beamed back. Kelley and Kariann pretended not to notice.

“Who else is coming tonight?” Tobin asked to no one in particular.

“Pinoe wanted to join later. She’s still in the laundry room” Kelley said.

“Oh well, she can get her own plate” Tobin grinned and sat down next to Christen, who rolled her eyes at the statement.

“I’m glad everyone is being so helpful!” Kimby said pointedly towards her friends who were all sitting down.

Kelley chuckled.

“I’m gonna help you” she said getting up.

“What do you need me to do?”

“The pasta is done, so you could pour the water out of the pot. Make sure you put the strainer into the sink before, though” Kimby instructed.

Kelley did as she was told, then turned towards the stove to grab the big pot.

In that moment, Kimby saw a scene flashing before her eyes where Kelley underestimated the pot’s weight and dropped it, the boiling water spilling onto her feet; the girl was only wearing flip-flops. The pot fell to the ground with a loud noise and the pasta spilled onto the floor. Kimby quickly turned towards Kelley and the stove as well, and when the pot slipped out of the other girl’s hands, she focused her vision on it, standing completely still. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Kelley’s surprised face. The pot safely landed on the floor next to Kelley’s feet with a thud, the lid remaining on top and only a little water spilling out. She looked up to find Kelley staring at her.

The others turned their heads towards the two girls as they heard the pot land on the floor and looked at them with bewilderment. Only Kariann knew exactly what had gone down.

_Kimby!_ She silently shouted at her twin sister.

_What!_ The other girl replied.

_We talked about this!_

_The boiling water was about to burn Kelley’s feet! Not to mention the weight of the pot! She plays soccer, she can’t get injured! Besides it would have ruined our dinner!_ Kimby defended herself.

Kariann didn’t reply and just sighed.

“Dude” Tobin spoke up.

“Did you drop the pot?” she asked towards Kelley.

The freckled girl was still standing there as if in a state of shock. She slowly looked up towards the others.

“I … think so? It slipped out of my hands. But it landed just fine” she said confused.

“Are you okay?” Christen asked worriedly.

“Yeah … I think so” Kelley repeated.

None of them had ever seen the out-going girl this speechless. Kimby and Kariann hoped she would just shrug it off.

Kimby picked up the pot and drained the water into the sink. Then she went to one of the cabinets on the other side to get a rag and clean up the water that had been spilled. Meanwhile, Kelley sat down at the table again, still not speaking.

The mood had changed, and the twins desperately hoped it would return back to normal again. Kelley just sat there, deep in thought. She tried to make sense of what had just happened. She was certain that she had seen a moment like this somewhere before, a moment where something or someone had landed more safely they should have, but she couldn’t figure out what it was.

Christen reached out to gently touch Kelley’s arm and bring her back into the present.

“Hey, it’s ok. Nothing happened. You didn’t get injured, and we can still enjoy our dinner” she said and smiled at her friend.

“You’re right” Kelley replied and smiled back.

Kimby started filling everyone’s plates with pasta, then put the pan with the tomato sauce into the middle of the table. Just as she was about to fill herself a glass of water from the sink, Megan came into the kitchen.

“Oh good, you haven’t started yet!” she stated.

“Wait, where’s my plate?” she asked as she was about to sit down next to Kariann, but saw there weren’t enough plates on the table.

Tobin giggled, earning an elbow into her side from Christen.

“Ouch!” she said in a fake-hurt voice.

“Tobin, you’re the worst!” Megan said dramatically, then went to the cupboard to get herself a plate and cutlery.

She joined the others at the table, and the mood was instantly lightened and back to the way it had been before. The friends enjoyed their meal together, talking and laughing about anything and everything. The twins decided not to talk about the incident for now in order to not ruin their night.


	17. Seventeen

Karlie could see the familiar black SUV coming to a stop down the street from where she was standing behind her window. She started excitedly jumping up and down, then told herself to calm down. She nervously glanced around her small apartment. She had spent all day cleaning. Not that she was a messy or unclean person, the opposite was true, but she had been self-conscious about the state her room was in, keeping in mind how clean Taylor’s Rhode Island mansion always was.

She saw Taylor getting out of the car, looking left and right to make sure no one was recognizing her. Karlie was sure there was a security guard sitting in the car as well, but he didn’t get out. Taylor made her way towards the front door, and the doorbell rang a few seconds later. Karlie rushed towards the intercom, letting the singer in and telling her which floor she lived on. She expected Taylor to take the elevator, but she came up the stairs, carrying a brown leather bag and grinning widely. Maybe Karlie’s obsession with fitness had finally rubbed off on the older girl.

She took Taylor’s hand and led her into the apartment. As soon as the door was closed, she started kissing Taylor, lightly pushing her against the door. Taylor responded immediately, pulling Karlie in close by her hips. After a while they separated, grinning at each other.

“Hey” Taylor said, out of breath.

“Hey yourself” Karlie smiled.

“I’m happy you’re here.”

Taylor just hummed in response and leaned in for another kiss, which Karlie gratefully accepted.

They separated again and Taylor gave Karlie one last peck on her lips. Karlie couldn’t help but blush, despite the fact that she and Taylor had been kissing each time they had been together since they watched the sunset on the beach. Taylor grinned at her when she saw the younger girl’s cheek flush red.

“Alright, show me your apartment” the singer said and squeezed Karlie’s hand.

The tour was over quickly as there was only the one room, the bathroom and the kitchen, but Taylor loved it nevertheless.

She went towards the bookshelf and laughed when she saw her own records standing on it in chronological order, with the CD she had given Karlie for her birthday in between. She studied the backs of the books with great interest, wanting to know what Karlie liked to read. Unsurprisingly, the student had a lot of non-fiction books about all sorts of science topics. Taylor was amused by the difference in their taste in books, given the fact that she liked to read novels and poems.

“Do you want to drink anything?” Karlie asked nervously.

Taylor wanted the girl to stop being so anxious, and walked over to her and put both her hands on the taller girl’s shoulders.

“Karlie, you don’t have to be nervous. It’s just me. And I love your apartment. I’m happy to be here. And I’m fine with a glass of water” she smiled.

“Alright” Karlie said and looked into Taylor’s eyes. They stayed like that for a while, until Karlie grabbed Taylor’s hand on her shoulder and led her into the kitchen.

Taylor sat down at the small kitchen table and watched as Karlie filled two glasses of water.

It was a cloudy Saturday, and the temperatures had dropped a little. The air was not cold yet, but not warm either. The trees had begun showing their colorful fall dresses. Taylor was wearing skinny dark-blue jeans and a light white long-sleeve shirt with a black top underneath. Her blonde hair was in a messy bun. Karlie was in washed-out jeans rolled up at her ankles and a white and pink long-sleeve shirt. Her brown hair was down, it had almost reached shoulder-length by now. Taylor couldn’t wait to see what the other girl would look like with long hair, she had only seen it in Karlie’s children photos so far.

They got up into the room again and made themselves comfortable on the small couch. It wasn’t big enough for the two tall women, but they didn’t mind, they had wanted to cuddle anyways. They told each other about their weeks and all the little things they had forgotten about in their text messages, exchanging kisses every now and then.

Both of them had been busy. Karlie with college, and Taylor with travelling, often going to LA, London or Nashville for multiple days at a time for photo-shoots, interviews and talk shows. With their different schedules and time-zones, they could often only exchange the most necessary information. Karlie had managed to come to Rhode Island only twice for the weekend, arriving Friday night and leaving again Sunday. She had given in and let Taylor book flights for her, the singer not wanting Karlie to spend all her money on transportation. Finally, Taylor had agreed to visit Karlie at her apartment in NYC and to stay for a night, despite the lower security standards. No one knew she was here, she told herself, and so there shouldn’t be a problem. She had given her security guard the rest of the day off until she would be picked up again the next day.

“Are you hungry?” Karlie asked after a while.

“A little” Taylor replied, not separating from Karlie.

“Wanna make dinner?” the taller girl continued asking.

“Hmmm” Taylor answered, but making no move to get up.

“Taylorrr!” Karlie exclaimed and playfully shoved the singer away from her.

“Get off me, I’m hungry” she laughed.

Taylor only kept clinging to her side.

“Fine, no butternut squash soup for you” Karlie announced, but couldn’t keep herself from grinning widely.

Taylor perked up.

“We’re making butternut squash soup? You should’ve said so!” she said and quickly let go of Karlie and got up from the couch.

Karlie just shook her head and giggled.

She reached out her hands for Taylor to take, and the singer helped her stand up.

When Karlie was standing again, she rested her head on Taylor’s shoulder and held the older girl close to her. They stood like that for a few moments, until Karlie announced that she was really hungry and took Taylor’s hand to lead her into the kitchen once more.

The two prepared dinner together, listening to music and talking about this and that. Taylor told Karlie how she had ended the PR contract with the actor she had been ‘dating’ the week before and the dramatic article Tree had an online magazine publish.

“I’m so heartbroken!” she said dramatically and put her hand over her heart, causing Karlie to giggle.

At one point, Taylor’s phone that was lying on the kitchen table gave off the sound of a notification.

“Oh! Ah, no, I’ll make him wait!” Taylor said after she had initially perked up at the sound.

“What?” Karlie laughed.

“You don’t want to answer whoever send you a message?”

“It’s not a message” Taylor grinned.

“It’s a Scrabble notification. I’m playing against Austin. It’s fine, I’ll make him wait, it’s a tight game” she smirked.

Karlie laughed again.

“Wow. That’s mean.”

“Yep” Taylor just said and continued stirring the soup.

After their dinner, they found themselves cuddling on the couch again. Taylor convinced Karlie to watch the remaining episodes of Orange is the new black that they hadn’t gotten to watch the last time. Karlie agreed. She liked the show, but she was not as invested in it as Taylor. But she didn’t mind, all she wanted to do was be close to the singer, the rest was just background noise anyways. And she was sure that sooner or later they would find a show to watch that they were both equally interested in. She wondered if Taylor liked watching documentaries.

When it was time to go to sleep, Karlie felt herself tensing up again. They took their turn using the bathroom, but after she had put on the t-shirt and boxer shorts that she always slept in, Karlie stood in the middle of the room awkwardly, waiting for Taylor to exit the bathroom.

_You’re in your own house, get it together_ , she scolded herself internally.

“What’s wrong?” Taylor asked worriedly when she re-entered the room and saw the taller girl standing there.

“Oh … I …” Karlie started, but didn’t know how to express what she felt.

Luckily, Taylor seemed to sense what was bothering her.

“I can sleep on the couch, you know” she said softly, taking a step towards Karlie.

Karlie blushed.

“I … no, no it’s fine. We talked about this, it’s fine. The couch is way too small and uncomfortable to sleep on, anyways” she replied, looking Taylor in the eyes.

“I’m sorry, I just felt awkward for a second” she added.

Taylor nodded.

“You look cute in your glasses, by the way” Karlie grinned, wanting to break the tension.

“Thanks” Taylor mumbled.

They lay down under the covers, Taylor scooting close to Karlie.

“This is ok, right?” she asked, draping her arm over the taller girl’s torso.

“Yeah” Karlie responded.

Until now, each time that Karlie had visited Rhode Island they had still slept in their separate bedrooms. They did want to take things slow, but it wasn’t like they were teenagers anymore, and both had been in relationships before. The truth was, both of them were afraid to take this next step for one simple reason. They were scared to get used to the other one lying beside them, knowing that it was a luxury they couldn’t have every night.

Karlie held Taylor close, inhaling her scent. The tension she had felt earlier had completely vanished, and she felt relaxed. She wanted to freeze this moment in time, not knowing when their schedules would align again to make this situation happen. She felt her heart aching at the thought, but decided to focus on the present and exile the negative thoughts to the back of her mind. There was plenty of time for them when she’d be alone again.

A thought went through her mind, and she decided to bring it up.

“Can I ask you something?” she asked softly, not knowing if Taylor was already falling asleep.

“Sure” the blonde answered sleepily, not moving from her spot.

“The songs you played on the radio two months ago … I know you sent me a text afterwards but we never really talked about it … you dedicated those to me, right?” she asked timidly, suddenly feeling self-conscious.

Taylor repositioned herself so she could look at Karlie’s face, then she burst out laughing.

“Yes, Karlie, obviously. They were. Thanks for noticing, though” she said drily.

“Hey” Karlie responded and shoved the singer playfully.

“I was, like, 90% sure, ok? Thought I’d ask” she chuckled.

She was glad that Taylor was making light of the situation.

“Yeah they were for you, smarty pants” Taylor reiterated.

Karlie couldn’t help the smile that spread onto her face.

“I really appreciated it. In fact, I was lying here bawling my eyes out” she giggled, then gave Taylor a quick peck on the lips.

The singer blushed.

“You did?” she asked.

“Hmmm” Karlie hummed.

She had another question at the tip of her tongue, one that made her even more nervous.

Of course, Taylor noticed that, too.

“Your heart is beating like, really fast right now” she stated and looked up at Karlie.

“Oh, yeah … I’m …” Karlie trailed off.

“Can I ask you another question?” she suddenly blurted out.

Taylor smirked.

“Sure. You have a lot of questions tonight” she giggled.

“Shut up” Karlie mumbled jokingly.

“I can, but then I can’t answer your next question” Taylor retorted drily.

“God, Taylor!” Karlie giggled.

“Ok, ok” Taylor said.

“What’s up?”

Karlie gulped.

_Don’t back off now_ , she thought.

She looked into Taylor’s blue eyes, letting herself get lost in them for a while until Taylor gently nudged her.

“Oh, right” Karlie mumbled.

“Taylor, would you … I know we haven’t named our relationship yet but … recently I’ve felt like …” she averted her eyes from the singer.

“Would you be my girlfriend?” she managed to get the question out.

She didn’t look at Taylor’s face, so she couldn’t see the smile that had started spreading on it.

She only looked back when Taylor didn’t reply, thinking she had screwed up.

“Yes” Taylor said softly.

Karlie felt like her heart was beating out of her chest and she knew that Taylor could feel it, too.

“Really?” she asked, just to be sure.

Taylor giggled.

“Yeah, really” she answered and gave a quick kiss to Karlie’s lips before she made herself comfortable against the taller girl’s chest again.

“Good night, Karlie” she said. Just like that.

Karlie’s thoughts were running a mile a minute, previously having thought of every possible scenario how this could go wrong, but it had been so easy. Everything felt easy now that she had asked, and received an answer. Taylor was her girlfriend now. She repositioned herself under the covers to be more comfortable, all the while holding Taylor close to her.

“Good night, Taylor” she mumbled before drifting off to sleep.


	18. Eighteen

__Karlie stared at her reflection in the bathroom mirror. Her brown hair was in a ponytail, and she was wearing more make-up than usual. She gave herself a weak smile. She had only been at this party for half an hour, but she already wanted to go home and curl up in bed. She sighed. Cara exited one of the stalls and used the sink next to Karlie. She looked at her friend with concern.

“You don’t look like you’re having fun” Cara stated, looking back at Karlie through the mirror.

“I’m sorry. I’m not in the best mood tonight” Karlie answered truthfully.

Cara turned towards the taller girl.

“Whatever it is that’s going on in your head, you most likely can’t solve it right now. Try to enjoy yourself a little, hm?” she said.

“Yeah, I will try” Karlie smiled weakly.

Cara smiled back and started moving towards the door, pulling Karlie with her.

“Your costume is ridiculous, by the way” Karlie reminded her friend for the hundredth time that night.

They were at a Halloween party at their regular bar, Sunset and Vine. Karlie hadn’t gone out much since the semester had started again, in fact the last time she had been here was at her birthday party. Cara had to drag her to this party too, not accepting that she would sit in her apartment by herself. Cara was wearing a Mario costume, complete with a red hat and blue overall.

“No it’s not! Just wait until Luigi shows up!” the British girl defended herself.

“And besides, yours is like, the nerdiest shit I’ve ever seen” she giggled.

Karlie just jokingly shoved her friend in response. The girl wasn’t wrong. Karlie was wearing a full-body NASA space-suit costume, the only thing missing was a helmet because she hadn’t wanted to carry one all night. Karlie felt, admittedly, a little too warm in the costume in the stuffy bar, but she thought it was still better than wearing one of those ‘sexy astronaut’ costumes. She didn’t judge the women who wore costumes like these, she just thought they were ridiculous. She wanted her costume to be accurate, and you just can’t wear a mini skirt in space.

They made their way over back to their friends, and Cara started squealing when she saw who had arrived. She pulled Karlie with her on her arm towards a brunette who was dressed up as Luigi, the outfit coordinated with Cara’s. Cara introduced them.

“Hey, I’m Alex” the girl shouted over the music in a raspy voice.

Karlie noticed how blue the girl’s eyes were. They reminded her of Taylor’s, but she pushed that thought away. She was trying to have fun without the singer tonight, she told herself.

“I’m Karlie” she shouted back and smiled.

She wondered if there was anything going on between Alex and Cara, given the fact that Cara hadn’t stopped talking about the girl she had met in one of her classes, but she decided to ask Cara about that another time.

Derek came over and handed Karlie a beer, which she gratefully accepted. He was dressed up as Waldo, with a white and red striped shirt and big glasses. Karlie couldn’t help but think that it fit his funny and light-hearted personality.

The two friends talked for a while as far as that was possible, given the music and chatter around them. Cara and Alex had joined another group of people at the other side of the room that Karlie didn’t know. Joan, a girl who lived in Karlie’s student housing complex, made her way over towards her and Derek.

She hugged Karlie, and Karlie introduced her to Derek.

“Where’s Jourdan?” the girl asked.

“Oh, she’s at another party tonight, with her boyfriend” Karlie explained.

Joan looked disappointed.

“Oh, that’s a bummer, I hoped to see her tonight.”

Karlie didn’t know what to answer, so she just gave her an apologetic look.

The three of them kept talking for a while more, then Joan excused herself and went back towards the people she was there with.

Karlie and Derek found an empty table and took a seat at the high chairs. They sat next to each other, listening to the music and watching the people around them. Karlie was glad that her best friend was there with her and didn’t push her to talk or to have fun. He was just there, sitting next to her.

When Derek went to the bathroom, Karlie took out her phone to text the twins. They were having a Halloween party at their college, and she was sure they were having a blast. She saw a text from Taylor, telling her to have fun tonight. She had added thirteen heart emojis, and Karlie both laughed at her girlfriend’s dorkiness and felt her heart ache in her chest at the same time. She missed her, they hadn’t seen each other since Taylor had stayed over and they had made things official.

She quickly sent a text back, not wanting anyone to accidentally look over her shoulder and see who she was texting, given the fact they hadn’t told anyone about the new development to their relationship. Taylor was in Nashville tonight, at a Halloween party with Abigail and other friends from high school. They had briefly considered Karlie joining them, but then concluded that it was too early for that and too risky if anyone found out.

Someone approached the table, Karlie looked up expecting Derek. However, standing in front of her there was a tall, muscular guy with a neatly trimmed beard. Before she could say anything, he addressed her.

“Is this seat taken?” he asked, looking her up and down.

“Yes, actually” Karlie replied, feeling uncomfortable.

“Oh. You’re here with your boyfriend?” the guy kept asking.

“No …” Karlie said.

The guy seemed to take that as an invite and sat down.

“I’m Kevin” he introduced himself and stretched out his hand.

Karlie didn’t say anything and refused to shake his hand.

“Hey, that’s not very polite” Kevin said, slight anger in his voice.

“Go away” Karlie simply stated.

She desperately wished she had bought that helmet that originally came with her costume so that guys like him wouldn’t approach her.

“Excuse me, you’re in my seat” Karlie heard a voice from behind Kevin.

He turned around. Derek was standing there, two new bottles of beer in his hands and a look of disgust on his face.

“And you are?” Kevin said in a condescending voice.

“The person supposed to be sitting on that chair” Derek said sharply.

The two guys stared at each other for a second, then Kevin seemed to give up. He put his hands up in defeat.

“Alright, alright, I’ll leave you guys alone. All I’m saying is you’d be having more fun with me around” he said and winked at Karlie, then got up and left.

“Eww” Derek said as he sat down and handed Karlie her beer.

“Are you ok?” he asked.

“Yeah, he didn’t touch me or anything, he was just obnoxious” Karlie said.

They left it at that and moved on to another topic.

Suddenly, Karlie could hear the first notes of a familiar song playing through the speakers.

 _“It feels like a perfect night-“_ Taylor’s voice started blaring through the room.

Karlie groaned and put her head in her hands. There was no escaping Taylor.

Derek looked at her in bewilderment for a second, then he recognized the song and burst out laughing. He reached out to pat his friend’s arm.

“Aww, are you not happy to hear a song from your famous new bestie playing?” he asked jokingly.

Karlie looked up at him and took a sip from her beer.

“I was trying not to think about her tonight” she groaned. Then she suddenly remembered that Derek didn’t know about Taylor’s and her relationship status.

“Aww, you miss her? Didn’t you see each other like two weeks ago?” Derek asked.

Karlie gave him a forced smile.

“You guys haven’t fallen out or anything, right?” Derek asked concerned.

“No, no, everything’s alright. I just wish I could get to hang out with her more often. You’re not jealous, right?” Karlie said quickly, hoping Derek didn’t think Taylor had taken away his best-friend-status.

“No, I’m not, Karlie, we’ve talked about this, remember? I’m just looking out for you, it’s probably weird sometimes when you just want to be friends with someone but they’re accidentally a world-famous pop star” he chuckled.

 _Yeah, you have no idea_ , Karlie thought.

“Thanks, and yeah, it’s difficult. With her security guards and all that. But it’s great, we’re getting along well” she said.

“I’m so happy for you” Derek said sincerely.

A while later, a tipsy Cara and a drunk Alex approached their table, sitting down on the high chairs opposite of the two friends.

“Karlie! There you are!” Cara exclaimed excitedly.

“I’ve been looking for you!”

“I’ve been here almost the whole night” Karlie giggled.

“So …” Cara started and reached for Karlie’s beer and took a sip before the taller girl could protest.

“So?” Derek asked.

“Have you found anyone hot, Karlie?” Cara asked and smirked.

Karlie blushed, and Derek rolled his eyes. Alex looked like she didn’t know whether to stop Cara from continuing or not.

“Come on, Karlie! There are so many hot girls around here! Did you see the tall blonde one in the cat costume sitting at the bar? She’s your type, right?”

Karlie groaned and put her head in her hands for the second time that night. It was like the universe had conspired against her to make this party as annoying for her as possible. All she wanted was to get into a rocket and shoot herself into outer space. Or Nashville. Or her bed. Whichever would work best.

“No, Cara, and I don’t care” Karlie responded and took her beer back from her friend.

“Come on, Karlie, I’m just trying to help. You need to get laid again. You haven’t gone out with anyone since-“

“Cara!” Derek interrupted and protectively put a hand on Karlie’s arm.

Alex leaned towards Cara and said something Karlie couldn’t hear.

Cara looked like she wanted to say something else, but then let it go.

“I’m sorry. I just want to help you-“

“Thank you, Cara, but I’m doing just fine, and I don’t need your help” Karlie said sharply.

“Besides, we’ve talked about this. I don’t work that way, remember? I told you that I need to have a strong emotional connection first in order to be attracted to someone in that way.”

“I know. I wasn’t trying to invalidate you. I just-“ Cara stopped and sighed.

“Let it go, Cara, ok?” Alex asked and rubbed the girl’s back.

“Don’t push it” she added and send Karlie an apologetic look.

Karlie gave Alex a weak smile. She appreciated that the girl was looking out for her even if they had just met. _It seems like she’s good for Cara,_ she thought.

The four of them went on to other topics after that, but Karlie was even less in a mood for the party now than before. She let the others talk and checked her phone again. There was a text from Kimby, telling her that they were having fun, and a few texts from Taylor. She tried to open the messages as discreetly as possible.

She laughed when she saw the messages. Taylor was obviously drunk by now, judging from her spelling. Karlie made a screenshot to hold it against her girlfriend the next time she saw her _. Look at the Scrabble queen making spelling mistakes_ , she thought and grinned.

Taylor had attached a photo of her and Abigail. The singer was dressed in a unicorn onesie with wings.

**Karlie**

You’re a cute unicorn :*

_11:47 pm_

 

The typing bubble appeared almost immediately.

 

**Taylor**

I’m not a uncorn!! I’m a peg acorn!! Learn the diffrence, Kralie!!

_11:48 pm_

Karlie burst out laughing, gathering suspicious looks from her friends.

 

**Karlie**

Alright, alright, I’m sorry. A cute pegacorn. Enjoy the rest of your night :*

_11:49 pm_

 

She quickly locked her screen and put the phone back into her pocket before any of her nosy friends decided to take it from her. Derek sent her a knowing look that Karlie couldn’t completely interpret, but Cara and Alex just looked at her confused. She decided to not let them in on who she was texting.

She wouldn’t admit it, but the picture of Taylor had lifted her mood considerably. She still missed her, of course, but she was happy that her girlfriend was having fun. She didn’t want Taylor to feel bad when she’d have to tell her the next day that she had spent her own party being grumpy and sad.

Karlie joined the conversation again, and managed to enjoy the rest of her night. She didn’t leave too late, it was a Thursday night and she had classes the next day, after all, but she was able to let go and have fun and not worry so much.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading and the feedback!!  
> I won't be able to update for a few days from now.  
> Hope everyone is having a good week!


	19. Nineteen

“Nope, Taylor, I wanna watch this!” Karlie exclaimed and laughed while trying to hold the remote as far away from Taylor as possible. This was one of those times where her long arms came in handy.

“Karlie, please, you know how much this embarrasses me. Can’t you watch it alone sometime next week?” Taylor pleaded, but to no avail.

Karlie successfully kept holding the remote from the singer, who was half on top of the taller girl, trying to reach it. They were sitting on Karlie’s small couch in her apartment watching TV.

Karlie insisted on watching the late night show, claiming she watched it almost every weekend and she wasn’t going to skip it just because Taylor was a guest in this episode. In fact, it made it all the more interesting to her. Taylor had only told her that she had been filming for this show, but had refused to give any details on the content or when the episode would air. So it really wasn’t Karlie’s fault that it happened to be the one the night Taylor stayed at her place, she insisted.

“Fine” Taylor eventually grumbled in defeat, sitting back properly next to Karlie.

When she saw herself on the screen in a preview for her performance, she pulled the blanket over her head and groaned.

“Karlieeee. I’m so embarrassed.”

Karlie laughed at her girlfriend. She had to admit that Taylor was pretty cute when she was flustered, which was one more reason she refused to switch off the TV. She pulled the blanket down from Taylor, causing the singer’s hair to get messy, and cuddled close to her.

“You’ll survive” she giggled.

“Don’t you have to watch videos of yourself for rehearsals all the time?” she asked.

“That’s different!” Taylor insisted and buried her head in the crook of Karlie’s neck.

They watched the show, Taylor hiding her face every time she appeared on screen. When her performance came on, she hid under the blanket again, causing Karlie to laugh.

When the show ended, they kept the TV running on low volume in the background, not interested in the other programs and wanting to talk more instead before they went to sleep. Their time together was limited, after all. November was almost over and they had only seen each other once during the entire month, Karlie once again making a weekend trip to Rhode Island. With finals coming up, Karlie was even busier than usual, and it made her miss Taylor even more when they were apart. She hated that sleeping alone at night was making her feel lonely again, just the way she had feared. She knew that Taylor felt the same way.

 

***

 

The next morning they decided to head out for breakfast at a small café a few streets away from Karlie’s house. Taylor called one of her security guards to let him know when they wanted to leave the house, and he waited up for them at the arranged time. Karlie had gotten used to his presence, he was like Taylor’s large, bulky shadow. She knew that going out to eat and go shopping with Taylor must not be his favorite pastime, but he was very professional and protective of Taylor. The singer usually had to convince him that he didn’t have to stay in the car the whole time she was at Karlie’s apartment.

As usual, the security guard sat down at a table near Taylor and Karlie’s. After studying the breakfast menu carefully, they both ordered coffees and grilled sandwiches. There were only a few people in the café, given the fact that it was a fairly cold and cloudy Sunday morning. During this season, most people preferred to have their weekend breakfast at home in their pajamas. Yet for the two women, going out together in public was something they cherished as a luxury, given the circumstances. Even though the waiter had recognized Taylor, she hadn’t been approached. Both women were dressed casually in blue jeans and, out of necessity, black turtlenecks.

Their conversation flowed easily as they were eating, talking about this and that. After a while they reached the topic of stage-fright and being camera-shy, referencing Taylor’s embarrassment from the night before. Karlie was quite surprised to learn that Taylor still got nervous before each and every performance.

“I don’t know, it just happens. I know it doesn’t look that way. But I’m always scared about what people might think, and that I’ll screw up” Taylor shrugged and took a sip of her coffee.

“But maybe it’s a good sign” Karlie said.

“It shows that you’re invested in what you do.”

Taylor smiled at her in response.

“That’s a good way to see it.”

She was lost in thought for a few seconds.

“What about you? Do you get nervous when you tutor your classes?” she asked.

“Of course. It gets less as the semester progresses, of course, and I get used to the students, but at the beginning of the semester I’m always nervous. I’m always scared that I can’t answer a question and that the students might think I’m incompetent” the taller girl confessed.

“And I used to get super nervous before performances as a child. I showed you pictures of me when I did ballet growing up, right? We had a Christmas show every year, and I was the tallest one, and I was always so nervous” she added and laughed.

“Yeah, I remember the photos. You were cute” Taylor smirked.

“Past tense?” Karlie returned in mock-offense.

“You still are” Taylor stated and stuck out her tongue towards Karlie.

“You know what?” she suddenly asked.

“What?” Karlie asked back, raising an eyebrow.

“When I first saw you at Club Red, I totally thought you were a model or something. But then you just turned out to be a huge nerd” Taylor chuckled.

Karlie put her half-eaten sandwich down on her plate and made a grimace, then she started laughing.

“Hey!” she exclaimed, unintentionally drawing looks from the people at a table nearby.

“I did walk a runway once as a teenager, believe it or not. It was just a local event in St Louis, though. They dyed my eyebrows this weird, almost white color and it didn’t come off until like a week later. People at school looked at me like I was some sort of tall, weird alien” she laughed at the memory.

“That’s awesome” Taylor laughed.

“I’m sure you were a cute alien” she said drily.

They ate the rest of their breakfast and headed out again a while later. Taylor would have to leave in the afternoon, going straight to LA for work the next day. They decided to go grocery shopping for snacks, then go back to Karlie’s apartment to hang out.

The grocery store was a few blocks away, and they decided to walk there, the security guard in tow. When they left the café, Taylor suddenly felt uneasy. After a few hundred yards, she realized why. On the other side of the street, behind a row of parked cars there was a paparazzo, taking her and Karlie’s picture.

Taylor’s heart started beating faster, and she was unsure what to do. She and Karlie didn’t hold hands in public so no one would suspect they were a couple, but she had promised to protect the girl’s privacy and didn’t want paparazzi photos of them floating around the media. She felt her palms getting sweaty and glanced towards her security guard, who hadn’t noticed anything. Neither had Karlie. She decided to keep the discovery to herself and hope for the best.

“Are you ok?” Karlie asked walking beside her.

“Yeah” Taylor assured the younger girl and did her best to smile.

“Let’s just go buy some snacks and then head home” she said.

 

***

 

Karlie didn’t enjoy her Monday morning 10 am class, but at least it wasn’t an 8 am class like the previous semester. She felt like a zombie, not having slept well the night before due to Taylor’s absence by her side. Nevertheless, she made it through the class and even managed to take notes.

She had another class right afterwards, and as always she arrived at the lecture hall early, using the time between classes to eat snacks and go over her notes. When she sat down at her usual seat at the back of the room, she noticed a group of three girls she didn’t know stare at her. She looked down at herself, briefly wondering if she had forgotten to put on a relevant piece of clothing, but then shrugged it off and looked away. However, out of the corner of her eyes she could see the girls hunched over a smartphone, talking animatedly and stealing glances in her direction.

_Is there anything on my face_ , she thought and checked the little pocket mirror she carried around. She was looking just fine, only tired.

The room started filling with more people, and eventually class started. Halfway through the lecture, Karlie could suddenly hear her phone buzzing in her bag. She was glad she had put it on silent before class and payed it no mind, wanting to focus on what was being taught, but the buzzing just wouldn’t stop. The guy sitting next to her gave her an annoyed look.

She took her phone out of her pocket and gasped when she saw she had multiple messages from the twins, Taylor and two missed phone calls from her mom.

_What happened_ , she thought and felt her heart beating out of her chest.

_Is Taylor ok?_

She had always been a worst-case scenario person.

She opened Taylor’s messages first. They read hectic and panicked, Taylor apologizing profusely for something and telling Karlie to call her ASAP. Karlie opened one of the screenshots Taylor had attached to her messages, and her heart stopped.

They were paparazzi photos taken of the two of them as they were walking to the grocery store and back to Karlie’s apartment the previous day. As far as she could tell, they had been posted sometime the night before on a gossip website Karlie had never heard of.

“Taylor Swift seen out and about with unknown friend in popular student area in NYC. Who is her new gal pal?” the headline read.

Karlie had to rest her head on the table for a few moments.

_Shit._

She hadn’t even noticed any paparazzi, and she was sure Taylor hadn’t either. This was something they had wanted to avoid. Taylor had told her many times that she didn’t want to drag Karlie into the mess that was the media, wanting to protect her privacy. They had been too careless.

Before she could think about it any further, she got another call from her mom. She thought it best to not postpone the conversation, so she scrambled her things together and left the lecture hall, earning a disapproving look from the professor, but she didn’t care.

She called her mom back when she was in the hallway and had made sure no one else was around.

“Karlie!” her mom said, sounding frantic.

“I received a phone call from Taylor’s publicist earlier. There are paparazzi photos of you and Taylor on the internet!” she exclaimed.

Karlie didn’t have time to wonder how Taylor’s publicist knew her parents’ phone number.

“I know, I just saw. The twins and Taylor texted me. I’m so sorry, mom” she said.

“Didn’t you tell me this would never happen? That Taylor would be able to protect your privacy? I don’t want to worry about your safety, Karlie. You know that there are weird people out there trying to get to Taylor. I don’t want anyone on the internet to talk negatively about you” her mom continued with frustration in her voice.

“I know mom. I’m so sorry. Until now everything has been going well. Her security guard is always with us when we’re in NYC. I need to talk to Taylor about this” Karlie stated.

“You should do that. Why do you need to spend all your free-time with her nowadays, anyways? Doesn’t she have other famous friends? Can’t the two of you just text?” the woman asked, annoyance in her voice.

Karlie’s family still had no idea that she was with Taylor, and her mom’s words hurt her deeply. She didn’t spend all her free time with Taylor, she was just as invested in her studies and hung out with her other friends as always. She didn’t even get to see Taylor that much. And Taylor could choose who she was friends with, it wasn’t her fault that the media wanted to know every detail about her life. But Karlie knew better than to throw these thoughts at her already angry mother at that moment.

“I will talk to Taylor and let you know what she said” she simply stated.

They hung up and Karlie read the texts from her sisters. They had seen the pictures on the internet this morning and were freaking out, though obviously they were not as hostile towards Taylor as their mom. If anything, they were surprised.

Apparently one of their friends who was also a fan had recognized Karlie as their sister and had asked all kinds of questions. The twins were asking Karlie how much they were allowed to say, and Karlie instructed them to only tell them that their sister just so happened to know Taylor Swift, they had just neglected to mention it towards their friend.

Karlie didn’t feel like going on with her day anymore, so she sent an email to the professor whose class she worked as a TA for to tell her she was sick today, then she went home.

 

***

 

Her hands were shaking as she pulled up Taylor’s contact in her phone and pressed call.

Taylor immediately answered her phone.

“Karlie” she said, sounding breathless.

“Hey” Karlie simply greeted, not knowing how to start the conversation.

“Listen, Karlie, I’m so so sorry. This shouldn’t have happened. I know I promised you it wouldn’t. Tree is currently working hard to have the photos removed. You’re ok, right?”

Karlie sighed.

“Yeah, I’m ok. Mom is super upset though. She fears that people will recognize me and use me to get to you or something. Now that I think about it, there were some girls who gave me weird looks today at college, maybe they saw the pictures? I don’t know” she said and let out a breath.

“Oh!” she added after a moment.

“But the twins have a friend at college who recognized me. I forgot her name, but it’s probably the same girl who asked them about the video a while ago, remember that? My guess is that she’s seen my face on Kimby’s Instagram before or something. But I told the twins to be as vague as possible” she explained.

“Oh wow. I hope that girl doesn’t get us in trouble” Taylor sighed.

“Thank you for telling me.”

“Look, this isn’t that big of a deal, ok?” Karlie tried to reassure the singer.

“Yeah it sucks and I’d rather not have my face on some random gossip website, but I’m sure we’ll be more careful from now on. We didn’t see the guy with the camera, we’ll just have to watch out more. My mom will calm down eventually” she said.

Taylor was silent at the other end of the line.

“Taylor? You still there?” Karlie asked concerned.

She could hear Taylor take a deep breath.

“Yeah, I’m still here” she said in a shaky voice.

“Look, Karlie, I need to tell you something … I did see the paparazzo yesterday.”

“What?” Karlie asked dumbfounded.

“I saw him. When we were walking to the grocery store to get snacks. He was at the other side of the road. I got super nervous and didn’t know how to act, so I didn’t say anything so I wouldn’t make you uncomfortable and-“

“Taylor! Are you serious?” Karlie interrupted her, an edge in her voice.

“I’m so sorry, Kar. It was a mistake. I wish I had told you, my security guard could have approached him or something, or we could have reacted more immediately when the photos got rel-“

“I cannot believe you right now” Karlie said sharply.

“You’re the celebrity here. You should know how to act in a situation like this. You said this wouldn’t happen” she accused the singer.

“I’m sorry, Karlie. I’m so sorry” Taylor said in an unstable voice.

Karlie had started pacing around the room, not knowing what to do with herself. She was mad at Taylor.

“I don’t really know what to say right now, Taylor. You were not being honest with me. I thought we had agreed to be honest with each other, and I thought that would include when we get our pictures taken without our consent” she said bitterly.

“I’m so-“

“I need to think about this for a while, ok? I’m a little overwhelmed right now. I thought we were in this together, but I feel left alone right now. I will talk to you later, ok?” she asked more put together than she really felt.

“Ok, Karlie. I’m so sorry. Talk to you soon” Taylor said sadly.

They hung up and Karlie threw her phone onto her bed, then herself. She noticed that Taylor’s scent still lingered between the sheets, and started crying.

 

***

 

In the afternoon, Derek came over with ice cream and chocolate, determined to be there for his best friend.

“Thank you, you’re the best” Karlie said as she hugged him.

“Jourdan was here earlier, but she had to leave again. I’m so happy you’re here” she smiled at him.

“Of course” Derek said.

“This sounds like quite a mess. Tell me everything!”

The two friends made tea, then sat down on the couch, and Karlie told Derek everything that had happened. She didn’t explicitly say she and Taylor were a couple, but she knew that the story made more sense if one knew they were, and Derek had been suspicious for a while, anyways.

That was why she wasn’t surprised when Derek carefully asked her.

“Can I ask you something? Are you and Taylor dating?”

Karlie’s first instinct was to deny it, but she was tired of keeping it a secret.

“Yeah” she nodded and couldn’t help the smile that spread across her face.

Derek’s eyes went wide.

“For real? I had a feeling, but dude … that’s awesome! I’m so happy for you!” he said sincerely.

“Thanks” Karlie replied.

Then she got sad again. She took a piece of chocolate from the package.

“But yeah, right now we’re arguing I guess … this is such a stupid situation. I don’t know what to think.”

Suddenly she looked at Derek, petrified.

“Oh! But you have to promise me you’re not going to tell anyone! Please. I didn’t even tell my mom or the twins” she said sheepishly.

“Don’t worry” he assured her.

They drank their tea in silence for a while.

“What did Cara say?” Derek asked after a while.

“Ehh. I texted her of course, and she was shocked, but she didn’t say much. She’s too occupied with Alex these days” Karlie scoffed.

“Yeah, I haven’t seen her in a while, either. I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault, Derek. And besides, you’re here, so all is well” Karlie smiled.

Derek smiled back at his friend.

“So, tell me more about Taylor” he said.

Karlie told him how they had started hanging out and about the first time she had visited Taylor at Rhode Island and how their relationship had gradually developed after that. She was glad he didn’t ask her to reiterate how they had originally met, because she had already forgotten the white lie she had told him the first time and would surely contradict herself.

“Are you not scared she’s gonna write a song about you?” Derek asked jokingly.

“Shut up, Derek” Karlie said and rolled her eyes.

“That joke is so old and boring. She can write about whatever she wants. And if something I did ends up in a song, then so be it.”

“Alright, alright” Derek laughed, not wanting to offend his friend.

They talked about this and that, their studies and the upcoming holidays.

“I’m so happy I’m going home for Thanksgiving on Thursday” Karlie said truthfully.

“I really need some space right now.”

Derek agreed.

The two friends had already booked a flight to their mutual hometown together, it had become their tradition since they both lived in NYC. They talked about their flight and families for a while, but Derek had to leave soon after. Karlie promised to call him should anything major happen before they would see each other again.

Before long she went to sleep, exhausted from the events of the day. She didn’t send Taylor her usual good night text, still angry with the singer. She would mend what had been broken sometime during the next days, she told herself.


	20. Twenty

“I have news about the video we’ve been talking about” Mr O’Hara announced.

The men and women sitting on the chairs that were arranged in a circle in the living room looked at him expectantly. They had talked about the video of the strange incident at a concert in their previous meetings as well, but hadn’t come up with any new results.

“So, last week during our Thanksgiving dinner I got to talk to my niece. She went away for college in the summer and I hadn’t seen her since, and we are not in touch besides the family group chat. Anyways, as I’ve told you before my family likes to tease me for being interested in the research that we do. My niece told our family how she had met two girls at college who lived on her floor and liked the same music as her, and how they hang out a lot. Then later she told me that these girls had been at the concert the video was taken at and-“ he began a detailed explanation.

“Please, get to the point. What do these college kids have to do with our research? I don’t see the connection” Mr Schulzenberger interrupted in the slightly rude manner he possessed.

“Yes, I’m getting there” Mr O’Hara said and took a deep breath.

“And because my niece is very chatty and out-going, she talks about just about everything that happens to her. So she told us in great detail how those two girls – apparently they’re sisters – have an older sister who is friends with the singer she loves. She said there had been some drama because of public photos or something. Anyways, she freaked out because her friends’ sister is her idol’s friend, and they never mentioned it to her” he continued.

“Before you interrupt me again, I’m getting to my point now. Later my niece asked me if I’m still interested in all this magic nonsense – her words – and said she had been in an incident she had thought was strange. Apparently she dropped a pot full of boiling water with spaghetti in the dorm kitchen, but it didn’t spill and instead landed quite softly on the ground next to her feet. She said she felt this weird tension as it happened, like time was standing still and then being fast forwarded. Anyways, she jokingly asked me if that didn’t sound like magic, and if I could explain to her what had happened, but I told her no.”

He paused, but everyone was still staring at him.

“I didn’t think about it anymore, Thanksgiving is always busy with all the family around, but the next day I remembered what my niece said about the incident and it reminded me of the comments under the video from the concert. The people who claimed to have been there described a similar phenomenon.”

The other people in the room hummed in understanding.

 “So I did something I’m not proud of and usually wouldn’t do, but it was for the sake of research … I don’t have any social media accounts, but I looked at my niece’s Instagram. It’s rather fascinating what young people these days publish of themselves on the internet. My niece uses it a lot. She posts photos every game that they have, and- anyways. The point is, I looked at her photos, and there was a group picture from the evening she and her friends cooked together a while ago, when the incident happened. Some of the girls in the photo were her teammates that she talks about often, but two weren’t. Though I found more pictures with them as well. I got curious and looked at the other girls’ profiles as well. One of them was private, but the other one posts a lot too, and some photos are of her and my niece with their friends. I looked at her photos, and I saw that she had been to the concert in St Louis, where the video we talked about was taken at. Do you understand what I’m getting at?” he asked towards the others.

He took a sip from his water bottle that was standing on the floor next to him, throat dry from having spoken so much. Despite the cold weather, he found himself sweating, worked up from sharing his discovery.

Mr Schulzenberger spoke up again.

“You suspect that somehow your niece’s friends and both incidences are connected?”

“I guess that’s a possibility. The sisters seemed to be there both times, right?” Mr Jackson, who was sitting next to Mr O’Hara, chimed in.

“That is exactly what I’m trying to say” Mr O’Hara nodded.

“And it seems like there’s more to it. My niece’s friend also has lots of photos with her sisters on her profile, and when I googled the singer I found that it was indeed the friend’s older sister in the paparazzi pictures. Unfortunately I didn’t save them, and they’ve been taken down in the meantime. But the older sister was at the concert, too.”

Mr Schulzenberger hummed in response.

“That’s a lot of coincidences” he said.

“So those sisters your niece is friends with were at both the concert and at the dorm kitchen when she dropped the spaghetti pot? Is that right?”

“Yes, that is correct” Mr O’Hara stated.

“So …” Mr Schulzenberger looked at the other attendees expectantly.

“Can we conclude that they may be able to perform magic tricks? They tried to avoid an accident both times?” he asked.

A woman sitting opposite to him gasped in surprise.

“That’s what I was thinking, too” Mr O’Hara confessed.

A silence filled the room, everyone lost in thought.

“It does make sense” Mr Jackson reiterated.

The others shared the sentiment.

“What are we going to do now?” Mr Schulzenberger asked, eager to get results instead of just speculating.

“We need to find a way to get to them” a brunette woman suggested.

“Maybe we can ask them questions.”

“Don’t be so naïve”, Mr Schulzenberger said angrily.

“As if they would just share any of their secrets. You’ve seen how hard it is to get any information at all.”

A discussion was brought to life how to proceed. Mr O’Hara kept quiet, having a bad feeling that he shared too much and it might cause trouble. He was only interested in the research, he didn’t mean any harm.

Unfortunately for him, Mr Schulzenberger’s plans were different.

“So, we will have someone go to their campus and watch out for them? Not to talk, just to see if anything is unusual about them.”

A man in his forties with blonde hair and an athletic figure was picked to fulfill the task. He was the newest member of the group, having only joined at the beginning of the year, and he couldn’t always make their monthly meetings. From what the others knew about him, he took the research very seriously due to personal reasons. He had a big nose and a faded scar on his left cheek that made his face look distorted, and a limp in his right leg. Despite this, he looked average enough to not draw any attention to himself for his assigned task.

Mr O’Hara protested, saying that this wasn’t what he wanted, but Mr Schulzenberger didn’t change his mind. He was the founder of the group, they held the meetings in his house, and he had the last word. Defeated, Mr O’Hara sent the man screenshots of his niece’s Instagram account.

He didn’t say anything for the rest of the meeting, feeling like he had betrayed his niece’s trust. They talked about their plan in more detail, but Mr O’Hara didn’t listen anymore. An hour later the meeting was dismissed, the attendees having agreed on a date for their next meeting, the first meeting of the upcoming new year. They would hopefully have a lot to talk about if everything went according to plan.


	21. Twenty One

Karlie fiddled with the buttons on her coat as she waited for the door to open. When it did, she was met with the surprised face of a young man about her age. He was tall and had curly brunette hair. She had never met him before, but she knew exactly who it was. Before she could say anything, he turned around towards the inside of the house.

“Taffy?” he shouted.

Karlie could hear footsteps approaching.

Before long, she was face to face with Taylor.

“Oh …” was all the singer managed to get out. She couldn’t help but stare at Karlie. The younger girl had changed her hair, but that wasn’t the only reason.

“I’ll leave you guys alone. I’ll be in the kitchen if you need me” her brother announced and retreated, not wanting to intrude.

Karlie and Taylor stood in the doorframe, having a silent staring contest. Neither of them knew how to act.

Taylor started freezing and waved towards Karlie to come in, then closed the door behind the taller girl.

“Do you want to talk in the living room?” she asked and let out a sigh.

“Yeah” Karlie said shyly.

They sat down on the couch with a considerable amount of distance between them. Meredith, who had been hanging out there, briefly roamed between Karlie’s legs, then went out of the room as if she could feel the tension between the two women.

Karlie looked at her hands in her lap, then looked up at Taylor.

“Happy birthday” she mumbled.

Taylor only smiled weakly in response, but stayed silent.

Neither of them said anything for a while.

“I didn’t think you would show up today” Taylor whispered quietly.

Karlie looked surprised at the statement.

“But I’m glad you’re here.”

Taylor was dressed in comfortable jeans and a black hoodie, her long hair in a ponytail. She wasn’t wearing any make-up and had dark circles under her eyes.

“Can we talk, please?” Karlie pleaded quietly.

“Yeah” Taylor nodded.

She scooted closer towards Karlie. Their bodies still weren’t touching, but she reached out her hand to hold Karlie’s. Both of them felt emotions rushing through their bodies at the touch, having missed the other’s presence.

“I’m sorry. I overreacted. I was mad at you, I still am, but I should have answered your calls. I needed my space, but I dragged it out for too long. That wasn’t fair to you” Karlie started, letting out a breath.

“I missed you so much. I want to resolve this. I can’t go on like this. I needed to see you today” she continued.

“I’m happy you’re here” Taylor said and squeezed her hand.

“And look, I’m sorry too. I was so stupid. I should have told you about the paparazzo when I saw him. The photos are taken down now, but that doesn’t make it ok. I promised to protect you, and I didn’t. I’m so sorry. And I missed you so much. I wanted to give you space to not upset you further, but I also thought you hated me now” she said sadly.

“No, I don’t hate you Taylor. You made a mistake, but you apologized. And I was the one who didn’t move on from it. But I want to resolve this now. I’m ready to move on. I’m sorry that I hurt you. And I know your life can be difficult with the media attention, and I didn’t even pay attention to the fact that this situation was bad for you too” Karlie replied.

“Are we ok?” she asked timidly.

Taylor smiled at her.

“Yeah, we’re ok. I’m sorry. I promise to never be dishonest with you again” Taylor said.

Karlie carefully smiled back. Taylor squeezed her hand again. She could sense that the younger girl was still uncomfortable.

“Your hair looks nice” Taylor complimented her to break the tension.

During the time that they hadn’t spoken as much, she had dyed her hair blonde. It had almost reached shoulder-length, too.

“Thank you” Karlie smiled shyly.

“I’m still getting used to it” she admitted.

“Come here” Taylor said and pulled the taller girl close to her.

Karlie complied and sat in front of Taylor, her right leg draped around the singer’s hips.

Taylor cupped Karlie’s face and pulled their faces close.

“I missed you” she said again and then kissed her girlfriend.

Karlie reciprocated the kiss. She had missed Taylor, too, and their kiss reminded her just how much. It was soft and slow, as if they were getting used to each other again. They kept kissing for a while, then broke apart smiling at each other.

Karlie stroked Taylor’s cheek.

“Happy birthday” she reiterated and kissed her again.

“Thank you, babe” Taylor hummed against her lips.

“You’re still having the party tonight, right?” Karlie asked as they separated and giggled.

“Yeah” Taylor simply replied.

“Good” Karlie said.

“I went shopping for a new outfit just for tonight. I hope you’ll like it” she grinned at Taylor.

“Can’t wait to see it” Taylor smiled back.

She looked over Karlie’s shoulder and laughed when she saw her brother peeking into the room from the kitchen.

“Austin! You creep!” she laughed.

Karlie quickly turned around, blushing. She wanted to separate from Taylor, but the singer held her close.

“It’s ok” she laughed.

“He will have to get used to this.”

Austin came into the room.

“I see you have made up” he stated and smiled good-naturedly.

“Now, would you please properly introduce me to your girlfriend?” he teased his sister.

He approached the couch.

“Karlie, this is my baby brother, Austin. Austin, this is my nerd girlfriend, Karlie” she introduced the two laughing.

Karlie stretched out her hand, but Austin leaned down to hug her.

“It’s nice to finally meet you, Karlie. I’m happy you’re here today. You saved the day” he said sincerely, but Karlie could hear an accusatory tone in his voice that he knew that she had hurt his sister.

“It’s nice to meet you too. I’m happy to be here, too” she gave him an apologetic look.

“I know you two are still top secret, but I made Taffy tell me everything because she was acting so strange after the paparazzi photos got released” Austin explained towards Karlie.

“But don’t worry. Only our parents and I know” he added.

Karlie smiled at him.

“Yeah, I told my best friend Derek. But he can keep a secret” she said towards the siblings.

Taylor rubbed the taller girl’s back.

“I’m glad you told someone. You tend to keep too much to yourself. Don’t you think you should tell your parents and sisters?” she asked.

Karlie sighed.

“Yeah. I will. I promise. Mom still isn’t too happy with what went down, so I don’t know how she will react, but yeah, I will tell them” she said.

Taylor nodded in response.

“It’s still early and we still have a lot of time before any guests arrive. Do you want to take a nap? You must be tired from the drive here” Taylor offered.

Karlie smiled.

“Yeah, that sounds great. I haven’t slept too well the last two weeks, either” she admitted.

Austin smiled at the two women, then went back to the kitchen where he had been sitting on the kitchen island, drinking coffee and studying for his upcoming finals.

Taylor and Karlie went upstairs, holding hands all the while. They were happy to be reunited and quickly fell asleep, cuddled close to each other on Taylor’s bed.

 

***

 

Karlie woke up from the sound of Meredith’s soft purring close to her ear. She opened her eyes and saw the cat standing next to her on the bed. With her free arm she started petting her. The cat kept purring and lied down on Karlie’s chest, not bothered by the fact that it was already occupied by Taylor’s head. The commotion caused the singer to wake up as well, who startled at the cat’s unexpected presence. She repositioned herself so she could look at Karlie better.

“Hey you” she said softly.

“Hey” Karlie smiled back.

“Looks like Meredith missed you too” Taylor stated, still in awe that her girlfriend and her cat got along so well.

Karlie just smiled in response and stroked Taylor’s arm.

They started talking about this and that, having a lot to catch up on. Still cuddled close to each other, they told each other about their Thanksgiving holiday as well as what they had been up to the past two weeks. Taylor scolded Karlie for skipping her classes so she could make the drive to Rhode Island, but she couldn’t hide the fact that she was happy that Karlie had done so. Besides, Karlie assured her, classes on Friday were not that important, anyways.

“Wait, I have a present for you!” Karlie said after a while.

“I almost forgot” she giggled.

She got out of bed to go look where she had left her bag. Taylor protested at the lack of contact, but Karlie was back in no time.

“Happy birthday” she said again, sliding under the covers again and handing Taylor a present.

“Thank you” Taylor said softly.

She opened the present and gasped.

“Wow Karlie, this is beautiful. Did you make it?” she asked in awe, turning the present around.

She was holding a hand-made notebook with a winter themed cover made from felt. On it were little snowflakes and colorful birds, a nice contrast to the dark-blue background.

“Yeah, I made it. Well, not every detail, but I put it together” Karlie smiled.

“It’s for your lyrics” she added.

Taylor smiled widely.

“Thank you so much! I love it!” Taylor said again and leaned up towards Karlie to give her a kiss.

Karlie cupped her face to keep her in place so the kiss would last longer.

They separated and smiled at each other.

Karlie felt her phone that she had taken out of her bag together with the present buzz on the mattress next to her.

“That reminds me, I completely forgot to text the twins. I told them I was coming here, they’re probably dying right now because they haven’t heard from me” she giggled.

Sure enough, she had quite a few messages from her sisters.

“Let’s FaceTime them, I’m sure they want to wish you a happy birthday too” Karlie suggested, and Taylor nodded excitedly.

Kariann immediately answered the call, and her face appeared on the screen.

“Karlie! Are you ok? You promised to text when you get there!” she said in an accusatory tone, but mostly sounded relieved to hear from her sister.

Karlie laughed. She held the phone so Kariann could only see her face, not revealing that Taylor was sitting next to her just yet.

“I’m good” she said light-heartedly.

“Wait, lemme get Kimby, she’s in her room. We’re studying right now, Tobin and Christen are at practice” Kariann explained.

Taylor and Karlie could see her get up from her desk and walk out of her room into the hallway, then open the door of another room without knocking. Soon enough, Kimby appeared next to her.

“Karlie!” she shouted excitedly.

“Hey Kimby” she greeted her sister.

“Are you at Taylor’s? Is everything ok?” Kimby wasted no time to ask.

“Yes, and yes” Karlie answered.

“Tell her happy birthday from us, will you?” Kariann asked.

Karlie giggled.

“Why don’t you tell her yourself?” she asked and moved the phone so the twins could see Taylor.

“Oh my God!” they said in unison.

“Umm, hi Taylor! Happy birthday!” Kimby quickly recovered from her initial surprise.

“Happy birthday!” Kariann repeated.

“Thank you guys! Haven’t seen you in so long! How are you?” Taylor thanked them and smiled, happy to see their faces. She had texted with them a few times, but did not talk to them regularly, usually getting news about them through Karlie.

“Finals are frying our brains!” Kimby shouted, making the others laugh.

“Yes, you freshmen have it so hard” Karlie teased her, though she knew that it was indeed difficult.

“So what have you been up to? Are you having a party tonight?” Kariann asked towards Taylor, changing the topic.

“Yeah, we’re having a party tonight” Taylor smiled.

She scooped up Meredith and held her so the twins could see her.

“Say hello to Kimby and Kariann!” she cooed, and the twins awed in response.

“Meredith! Please tell her how much I love her!” Kimby exclaimed, earning a slap on the shoulder from her twin.

Taylor laughed.

“I always make sure to tell her. I always read her your comments on her pictures on Instagram” she joked.

Karlie rolled her eyes, knowing that wasn’t the case.

“You read those?” Kimby yelped, making the others laugh once again.

After their laughter quieted down, Karlie squeezed Taylor’s hand off-screen, silently telling her she was about to let the twins in on their secret. Taylor squeezed her hand back, guessing what Karlie was about to do.

Unexpectedly and without saying anything, Karlie turned her head towards Taylor and gave her a quick peck on the lips.

The twins gasped in surprise.

Karlie and Taylor burst out laughing, but couldn’t help blushing. They turned towards the screen again to see the twins stare at them with their jaws on the floor.

“What-“ Kimby started, but was at a loss for words.

Kariann just grinned widely.

“So yeah, that’s what we wanted to let you know” Karlie smirked, satisfied with her action.

“You two are a couple?” Kimby asked, just to make sure.

“Yeah” Taylor said and smiled. Her heart was beating out of her chest. Somehow she cared a lot what Karlie’s sisters had to say about them.

“That’s so awesome!” Kimby said and smiled at them.

“I knew it” Kariann simply stated.

“What?” the others asked her, shocked.

“What can I say … you weren’t as subtle as you thought you were, and I can hear thoughts, remember? I didn’t say anything because I wanted to let you guys figure it out for yourselves, but you’ve totally been crushing on each other since the meeting, or maybe even since Club Red” she smirked, looking proud of herself.

Taylor and Karlie both blushed deep red.

Kimby found the situation hilarious.

“Aww, look how much you embarrassed them” she cooed.

“Are you gonna tell mom and dad and Kristine?” she asked more seriously, wanting to spare her older sister any further embarrassment.

“Yeah, I plan on doing so in the next days” Karlie replied truthfully.

“I’ve told my parents and brother too” Taylor stated.

“That’s great” Kariann said.

They kept talking for a while, but then the twins had to go back to studying, and Taylor and Karlie had to start with preparations for the party. They hung up promising to FaceTime with the four of them again sometime, and Karlie felt the lightest she had felt in weeks. She was with Taylor again, she had let the people close to her in on their secret, and all was well. Her chest that had been heavy was filled with butterflies once more and she couldn’t keep her wide smile off her face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading and for the feedback! <3


	22. Twenty Two (ooh ooh)

“You look gorgeous!” Taylor complimented her girlfriend when she came back into her room.

“Thank you” Karlie said flustered.

“I’m happy you like it.”

She was wearing a simple gray long-sleeve shirt with a white pinstriped blouse underneath, and black skinny jeans. She had gone shopping for it the week before, wanting a nice outfit for Taylor’s party. She was happy that they had made up and that she could actually wear it tonight.

Taylor was still putting make-up on, despite the fact that the first guests were supposed to arrive in a few minutes. She was wearing an all-black outfit: a long-sleeve shirt, a skirt and tights.

“Every time I’m with you it makes me look like I’m super early and prepared” Karlie teased the singer.

Taylor gave her a disapproving look through the mirror, but then turned around and smiled.

“Can I get another kiss before I put my lipstick on?” she asked, doing her best at making puppy eyes at her girlfriend.

Karlie giggled and pulled Taylor in close to her.

“You don’t have to ask” she mumbled and closed the remaining distance between them.

They kissed for a while, until they were interrupted by Austin screaming something from downstairs.

“Taffy! There’s a car arriving in the driveway! Hurry up!”

They separated and giggled. Taylor put on her signature red lipstick, then the two headed downstairs.

“I’m nervous to meet your friends” Karlie admitted when they reached the hallway.

Taylor took her hand and pulled her behind her into the kitchen, where Austin was still sitting.

“You don’t have to be” she said softly and pulled Karlie into a hug.

“Just be yourself. They already love you.”

“Ok, if you say so” Karlie whispered into Taylor’s hair.

Austin coughed to remind them of his presence. Before any of them could say anything, the doorbell rang and Taylor jumped up to answer it, leaving a blushing Karlie behind.

Taylor’s high school friend Abigail was the first to arrive. Taylor had seen her last on Thanksgiving, but that didn’t stop the two best friends from acting like they hadn’t seen each other in a hundred years. Karlie smiled at their behavior.

Then she was introduced to Abigail, though the two had heard a lot of each other through Taylor, obviously.

They made their way into the kitchen, where Abigail greeted Austin, and made small-talk. Taylor had texted Abigail earlier in the day to let her know that she and Karlie had resolved their fight and that Karlie was there, to avoid any embarrassing situations.

Karlie relaxed a little, finding Taylor’s red-headed best friend nice and welcoming and non-judgmental. Taylor had only invited a few people, claiming she wanted to celebrate her next birthday more instead because then she would be ‘a quarter century’ old. The tall girl was relieved to not be confronted with so many people at once, especially not so many celebrities.

More people started arriving and were introduced to Karlie. She and Taylor had agreed to act natural around everyone and not pretend to just be friends, Taylor not wanting to put on a show at her own party in her own house. She had a rule that people were only allowed to upload selected photos to social media in order to protect her privacy, and so they would only have to filter out those photos that had Karlie in it later. Both of them were relieved to be able to act like themselves for the night.

They were sitting on the couch in the living room, everyone having grabbed a beer and snacks from the kitchen. Taylor’s friends and she were catching up with each other, Karlie sitting close by Taylor’s side, not joining the conversations but listening attentively.

After a while Taylor perked up when she saw Selena coming into the room. She hadn’t heard the doorbell ring. She got up to greet her friend and they exchanged hugs.

Selena joined them on the couch and let herself be introduced to Karlie.

“It’s nice to finally meet you, Karlie” she said warmly.

Karlie felt nervous once again, but smiled back.

“It’s nice to meet you too” she said politely.

“You were right, Taylor, she really could be a model” Selena said towards Taylor, smirking.

Both Taylor and Karlie flushed deep red.

“Aww, look at you two” Selena teased and nudged Taylor’s arm.

“So, you’re the reason Taylor has all that hummus and almond milk in her fridge now” she added towards Karlie and laughed.

Karlie put her head in her hands in embarrassment.

“Stop teasing her, Sel. Be nice!” Taylor warned, but laughed too.

Their conversation went on, Selena talked about the tour she had just finished and her Thanksgiving holiday, and what her plans for the new year were. She made an effort to include Karlie, asking her questions about college and her family, and Karlie appreciated it. She felt welcome in Taylor’s circle of friends and her nervousness decreased.

Taylor felt beyond happy to have her girlfriend by her side on her birthday, as well as her best friends and her brother. She didn’t leave Karlie’s side all night, even when she circulated between the living room and kitchen, talking to different people. Meredith was nowhere to be found, having fled upstairs to avoid all the people, but Taylor didn’t mind.

At one point Taylor found herself standing around the kitchen island, pouring herself another glass of wine and talking with Karlie, Selena and Austin.

“So Karlie” Selena started.

“Taylor told me that when you two met at Club Red, you gave her a really nice letter with your phone number on it, and a cute present. I must say, you really had some balls to do that. But I guess it payed off” she smirked.

Karlie was about to protest, when she caught Taylor’s panicked look, telling her not to say anything. She was confused, but then remembered the reason she had been at Club Red in the first place. It was something she never really thought about anymore.

“Oh … yeah … thanks” she managed to get out.

She could feel Austin stare at her from the side. Of course he knew what had really happened as well. She hoped that Selena would drop the subject, but she was not so lucky.

“What was it that you gave her? She never showed me” Selena continued.

_Oh boy._

Karlie’s head felt empty and she couldn’t come up with a single thing people would give each other as a present. Then she remembered her birthday present for Taylor.

“Oh, it was … a notebook … for her lyrics” she said and smiled weakly.

Then she suddenly remembered that she had made the notebook winter-themed and there would have been no reason for her to give it to Taylor in the middle of the summer.

“It was … red” she said lamely.

Next to her Austin did his best not to burst out laughing, but Taylor looked like she wanted to be swallowed by a black hole.

“Ha, that’s very fitting!” Selena grinned.

She turned towards Taylor.

“You need to show me sometime! Have you already written in it?”

“Oh … yeah …” Taylor said, not knowing what else to do.

_Looks like I either have to make one appear out of thin air soon when she asks to see it again, or Karlie will have to make another one for me,_ she thought to herself.

_Actually, I’m gonna have Karlie make one, she’s the one who came up with the lie._

_Oh no, wait, that was me back when Sel and I hung out in New York. Goddammit._

She smiled at her friend, then quickly changed the topic.

“My parents are coming over tomorrow, can’t wait to see them again!” she announced.

Karlie’s eyes went wide.

“Really?”

Selena and Austin started laughing at her reaction. Taylor looked guilty.

“Yeah … I’m sorry I didn’t tell you. We planned it, uh, last week, and … you know … I wasn’t sure if you’d be here …” she trailed off.

Karlie looked down at her feet.

“Oh, yeah. I understand. I can leave in the morning if you want me to” she said quietly.

Selena and Austin had stopped laughing and now stared at the couple, sensing a possible awkwardness.

“No, Karlie. It’s fine. Dad really wants to meet you. You’ve met my mom at Club Red, she already loves you. Unless you think it’s too early …” Taylor said honestly.

Karlie looked up again and smiled, breaking the tension.

“Really? If you don’t mind. Then I will leave in the afternoon or something, so you can have your family to yourself for the rest of the weekend” she compromised.

“Sounds good” Taylor said and gave Karlie a peck on the lips.

The other two looked relieved.

“I’m gonna be there too” Austin chimed in.

“I’m sure our parents will like you, Karlie” he smiled.

“Thank you” Karlie replied shyly.

Taylor softly ran her fingers through Karlie’s newly dyed hair.

“You two are so adorable” Selena stated and smiled at them.

Taylor gave Karlie another kiss, smearing a bit of red lipstick on Karlie’s upper lip doing so.

The four of them continued talking about this and that and eventually went back into the living room to sit down comfortably. Everyone was enjoying themselves, talking, listening to music and taking polaroids with the camera Austin had gotten for his sister. The night went by quickly, and the last guests left around 2 am. Karlie and Taylor went to sleep exhausted, but happy and full of anticipation for the next day that would mark another huge step in their relationship.


	23. Twenty Three

The man shivered from the cold and put his scarf closer around his neck. He took a sip out of his coffee to go and let his eyes roam over the people around him. No one payed attention to him, in this cold weather none of the students wanted to stay outside for longer than necessary, and everyone went quickly towards their destinations. It was finals week and the students were caught up in their thoughts, their heads full of the material they had been studying.

He slowly made his way across the campus the way he had done for the past hour. From one lecture hall towards the library, then past the cafeteria and towards another main building. Due to a limp in his right leg he couldn’t walk very fast, but he was used to it. Besides, he was looking for someone specific, so he couldn’t allow himself to be hectic and possibly miss who he was looking for, anyways.

It was in-between classes, so there were many students going back and forth. _I hope I’m lucky, I don’t want to come back tomorrow_ , the man thought to himself.

After a while, his eyes caught the figures of two girls walking from one building towards another and talking animatedly. One of them was tall and blonde and elegantly dressed. The other girl was a bit smaller and dark-skinned, dressed more casually and carrying a large sports bag over her shoulder. He recalled the photos he had looked at over and over again within the past week and a half, burning them into his mind. The blonde girl was one of the two girls he was looking for, he was sure.

The two girls were walking in his general direction, so he stopped walking and waited until they were about 60 feet away from him. He had no intention of approaching them, he just wanted to observe. Seeing them from up close, there was no doubt in his mind that the blonde girl was Mr O’Hara’s niece’s friend. He thought that she looked like any other college kid her age, and that nothing about her appearance gave away what they suspected her to be, but he also knew very well to never judge a book by its cover.

Before the two girls entered the building they were headed to, the blonde girl suddenly stopped walking and pulled on her friend’s arm to make her stop as well. The man was in ear-shot, and he could hear the dark-skinned girl ask her friend what had made her stop. The blonde simply turned around, and the man saw another girl approaching them, waving at them excitedly.

 _Weird_ , he thought.

_I didn’t hear her call out towards them. She was close enough for me to hear._

“Oh, Kari!” the dark-skinned girl excitedly greeted the girl when she had reached them.

“Hey Jewell! How are finals?” she asked and giggled.

The girl named Jewell simply groaned in response.

The two blonde girls had simply acknowledged each other with a nod. It struck the man as odd, because the blonde one had been the one to turn around towards their mutual friend. He kept walking a little, not wanting to stand there and stare and make himself suspicious. He could see the girl named Kari look around herself in confusion, as if she had noticed him, but she looked over him.

The man could see her face then and a light bulb went on in his head. It was the other girl from the photos! The two blondes were the sisters he had been looking for. _Today is my lucky day_ , he thought.

He watched the three girls talk for a while more, then they went their separate ways again. The two girls he had seen first entered the building, while the other blonde girl headed into the direction she had originally come from. He looked after her and saw that she was walking towards the library. His heart stopped when she turned around and her eyes roamed the people around her in confusion, as if someone had called her name but she couldn’t figure out who it was. She turned around again though, not having made eye contact with the man. He let out the breath he had been holding.

He threw away his now empty plastic cup and walked towards the parking lot, ready to turn up the heating in the car and head home. He had seen enough. Their aim had been to simply confirm that the sisters actually went to the college and to see if there was anything unusual about them. They had looked normal enough, he thought to himself as he looked for his car, though he couldn’t shake their slightly strange behavior from his thoughts.

How had the one girl known her sister had called out for her? She hadn’t had her phone out, and the sister hadn’t called out for her. In fact, the girl had been engrossed in a conversation with her friend. And he wondered if the other girl had noticed him, she had been glancing in his general direction, though it hadn’t seemed like she had seen him. There had definitely been something strange about them.

He couldn’t wait to call Mr Schulzenberger and tell him that he had been successful. He had no idea what the next steps would be, but he was sure that the leader of the group already had a plan. He was glad to have found this group and to have people who took him seriously.

Ever since he had witnessed an almost-accident about two years ago, he was sure there had been supernatural powers involved, and he was determined to make sense of the scene he had seen. He had been waiting at a red light as a pedestrian at a busy crossroad. On the other side, the light had just turned red for the pedestrians, and it would be his turn to walk soon. However, a woman had still been in the middle of the road when suddenly a jeep had come around the corner at high speed.

He clearly remembered how he thought that he was about to witness a fatal accident and had stood there frozen in place. While the driver had obviously pulled the brakes at the last moment, the car still hit the woman, the braking distance being too long.

However, the next thing he remembered was that the car drove through the woman, then coming to a halt some 50 feet behind her. The woman had been knocked over, but not in the way one would have fallen down when one got hit by a car. The man knew a thing or two about that, having been in a similar accident as a young boy, the aftermath still visible on his body today. The woman had rather been knocked down as if she had been hit by one of those big gym balls, and she hadn’t seemed to be injured.

He and other passersby had quickly rushed over to help the woman up, but she had only gotten a shock. When they looked towards the car, they could see it had already driven off, too far away to read the license plate.

Since no one had gotten injured, the people had dispersed again soon after, shrugging the incident off and feeling lucky that it hadn’t turned out worse. The man, however, could not stop thinking about what he had witnessed. He was a very rational man and didn’t give into any make-believe. Therefore he was unsure if his mind had been playing a trick on him, but he found no explanation. The car had driven right through the woman. Its contours had been blurred for that one second. He was sure of it, he had witnessed it with his own two eyes.

Unfortunately for him, when he told his wife about the incident and his speculation, she had simply laughed at him, not being used to such a way of thinking from him. So he had taken to the internet and after a while found Mr Schulzenberger’s group. He felt understood and taken seriously, and so he didn’t mind to make the drive from South Carolina to the small Georgian town every two or three months to attend meetings.

Ever since he had learned more about the ‘conspiracy theories’, as his wife called them, of the secret existence of a world-wide group of witches and magicians, he had become wrathful at this group of people. If they existed and possessed supernatural powers, why did they not use them for good? There were wars going on and people starving, houses burning down and accidents happening. Maybe technology could be improved with their knowledge and spare innocent children from a life of suffering the way he had. If anything, to his mind the magicians were selfish and had to be exposed in order to be of use to the greater good.

He thought about all this on the drive home, not knowing how similar his train of thought was to the one of the girls he had just spied on, despite them stemming from different backgrounds.


	24. Twenty Four

“Is this really ok?” Taylor asked Karlie as they got out of the car.

“Yes, Taylor. I suggested it, remember?” Karlie said and rolled her eyes playfully.

They stood on the sidewalk, Taylor’s security guard next to them.

“I just wanted to make sure” Taylor mumbled.

“I’m pretty sure you just want me to give in so we can stay home” Karlie grinned and nudged Taylor’s arm.

“Maybe” Taylor grinned back at her.

“Trust me, this will be fun! Besides, I haven’t gotten any exercise yet this year” Karlie assured her.

“It’s January 3rd” Taylor replied drily.

“Exactly” Karlie said and pulled Taylor by her arm so the older girl would follow her.

They entered Central Park; the street lamps were already on as the sun was about to set. So far the new year had presented itself in a glistening white snow dress and a clear sky. The air was cold and despite it being Friday night there were not many people outside.

Taylor and Karlie had not been able to see each other over the holidays, both wanting to spend time with their families and having decided that it was too early to visit. Karlie had met Taylor’s parents the day after the singer’s birthday when they had gone to brunch together, and they had been welcoming and accepting towards the student.

Taylor, however, hadn’t been introduced to Karlie’s parents yet. They were still processing the fact that their daughter was in fact dating the singer. It wasn’t that they didn’t think Taylor wasn’t good for Karlie, they were just worried about Karlie’s safety. She couldn’t blame them and had decided to give them as much time as needed and to not rush anything.

So Taylor found herself in New York City once again. She had just arrived earlier and would stay the weekend, until the spring semester would start for Karlie the next Monday.

“See, there’s not that many people here!” Karlie said excitedly after they had walked for a while.

The ice skating rink glistened white under the floodlight, with the city’s tall buildings rising up in the background. They walked down the path towards the entrance. To Taylor’s surprise, there was only a small queue. It eased her nerves a little.

They had talked at length about how they would go about going out in public together after the paparazzi incident, and had decided to not change anything. They didn’t want to limit themselves, and Taylor didn’t want to take this important part of normalcy from Karlie’s life. If there ever were paparazzi again, they would simply hide or have the photos taken down again, if any got released. Karlie had insisted on them not holing up in their houses, not wanting Taylor to become more anxious than she already was.

“I don’t think he’s having fun” Taylor whispered to Karlie when they were sitting on the wooden bench, putting on their skates.

Karlie looked at the security guard and giggled.

He stood a few feet away from them, watching them and the other people and shifting from one foot to the other.

She took Taylor’s hand, both of them wearing thick gloves. She wished she could kiss her girlfriend right now, finding her adorable in her beanie and unsteady stance on the skates, but she knew that it wasn’t possible. At least no one seemed to have noticed them so far, she thought.

Karlie led them towards the ice and stepped into the rink before Taylor so she could help her in. She burst out laughing when she saw Taylor’s anxious face.

“Oh come on! It’s not much different than regular skating!” she said.

Taylor took the step forward and immediately lost her balance, stumbling into Karlie.

“Yeah. Except it’s on ice. And on blades. That could cut your fingers when you fall. Or you could die” she said dramatically.

Karlie rolled her eyes again.

“I promise you, this is fun” she tried to assure the singer.

“I should never trust your idea of ‘fun’ again” Taylor grumbled and anxiously held onto Karlie’s arm.

“Come on, let’s skate until the fence. We’re in the way of people here” Karlie said and started sliding effortlessly.

Taylor helplessly clung onto her coat and did her best to not trip and fall.

“You have to slide, Taylor, like this” Karlie instructed when they had reached the fence and Taylor had something else than Karlie to hold onto again.

The taller girl showed her how to skate, but all Taylor could do was admire Karlie’s athleticism. Was there anything the girl was bad at? Except, maybe, Scrabble?

“Taylor! Your turn!” Karlie said when she reached Taylor again, careful not to say her name too loud in order to not draw any attention to them. If anyone had noticed them, they had kept a respectful distance and not approached Taylor.

Taylor tried to skate on her own, and Karlie complimented the progress she made, even though Taylor was sure the girl was just being polite. She kept practicing near the fence, while every once in a while Karlie went to skate around the rink on her own at her own pace. She made it look elegant and effortless.

Taylor glanced towards the entrance area where the benches were, and found her security guard still standing there, facing in their direction and watching them. She decided that she would give him a bonus after tonight for standing in the cold on his own while she made a fool of herself.

After a while, they decided to take a break and went towards the snack bar to order mulled wine and hot tea. Their security guard came over and Taylor invited him for a cup of coffee, which he seemed grateful for. Taylor and Karlie warmed up with their hot drinks and talked about this and that. Karlie had spent the day at the Reign Coffee with her classmates, preparing for the upcoming semester.

“You’re so studious. I admire that” Taylor said honestly and smiled at Karlie.

Karlie appreciated the compliment, knowing that Taylor was no less hard-working, just in a different field. She felt butterflies in her stomach and once again wished she could kiss her right there.

Two women who looked to be in their early thirties approached them carefully. Taylor tensed up a little, and Karlie put a hand on her arm to calm her nerves.

“Oh, excuse me, we saw you two and … you’re Taylor, right?” the one with short black hair said towards Taylor, keeping a distance and low voice in order not to make a scene.

Taylor relaxed when she realized that they were polite and respectful.

“Yeah, I am. What are your names?” she asked in a friendly tone that made Karlie once again admire the way the singer interacted with her fans.

“Oh. I’m Jasmine. This is my girlfriend, Chloe” the dark-skinned woman answered, seemingly surprised at being asked a question by Taylor immediately.

Chloe, a tall woman with long brown hair, smiled shyly at Taylor.

Taylor seemed unfazed by the women’s nervousness, and Karlie couldn’t help but remember the first time she had seen Taylor in person. The singer just had that effect on people.

They shook hands and the women asked Taylor if she had enjoyed her holidays. They looked at Karlie as well, but didn’t say anything towards her. Taylor’s security guard watched them from where he was standing and smiled at Karlie encouragingly when he caught her look.

They talked for a while more, the two women becoming chattier and less nervous.

“Oh, Taylor, we actually got to meet because of you. We met at a show at your Speak Now tour” Jasmine said.

Taylor’s eyes went wide.

“Really? That’s so awesome! That makes me so happy!” she said and smiled widely.

The two women smiled back at her. They asked for a photo, which Karlie took, and then they went towards the exit after thanking Taylor for talking to them, having already finished their skating session.

Taylor took the last sip of her mulled wine and put the cup back onto the high table.

“They were so friendly! And they met at my show! I’m so happy!” she beamed towards Karlie.

Karlie smiled back at her. Seeing Taylor this happy gave her butterflies in her stomach. All she ever wanted for her was to be this happy all the time, without any mean articles written about her or the need to hide who she loved. _One day_ , she thought to herself.

She took Taylor’s hand again and they went back into the ice skating rink. Karlie convinced Taylor to try skating in the middle of the ice without the support of the fence, but all the older girl did was cling towards her again, squealing and stumbling.

Karlie laughed and put her arms around Taylor’s torso, both hugging and trying to balance her.

“It’s ok, Taylor” she giggled into her ear.

“You have to be bad at _something_.”

Taylor groaned.

“Says the all-rounder” she said sarcastically.

“What? I’m bad at a lot of things” Karlie laughed.

“True. You did try to spell cookie with a k in Scrabble the other day” Taylor said drily and separated from their hug, only to cling to Karlie’s coat immediately again when she remembered she couldn’t stand steadily on her own on the ice.

“Don’t be mean, or I’ll make you go off the ice by yourself” Karlie giggled in response and skated backwards for emphasis.

“Noo! Stay!” Taylor squealed and tried to chase the taller girl, but she could hardly inch forward by herself at all.

Karlie laughed at her and skated back towards her girlfriend. They stayed on the ice a little longer until both of them were cold and wanted home.

Despite the fact that Taylor knew that she would have sore muscles in her legs the next day, she felt happy and relaxed and couldn’t help but smile looking up at the bright lights of New York, the city that had Karlie in it and that started to feel like home.


	25. Twenty Five

“And the Grammy goes to … Random Access Memories, Daftpunk!”

Kimby had jumped up from the couch at hearing the first syllable, but then plumped down again.

“Noo!” she exclaimed, gesturing wildly at the TV in disappointment.

She felt sad seeing Taylor’s reaction so similar to her own, and knew that the singer would not take the loss well.

Kelley came into the living room, making her way between the rest of the people standing around, holding a full red cup in her hand.

“You missed it! They already announced it!” Kimby said when her friend had approached the couch.

“She didn’t win.”

“What? Noo” Kelley said, looking disappointed.

“I really wanted her to win.”

“Yeah, me too” Kimby said and reached for the remote to switch off the TV, no longer interested in the award show.

She got up from the couch and went with Kelley to look for their friends. They were at a house party of some dude from the men’s soccer team that Kimby didn’t know, but Kelley had dragged her along. She had agreed to tag along under the condition that she was allowed to watch TV to see if Taylor would win Album of the year. The host of the party hadn’t minded, having gotten weirder requests from guests at parties.

Kimby had felt a little bit like a third wheel all night. Her roommate Tobin was away for January camp for the national team, otherwise she would have been there. Kimby admired her roommate for her soccer skills and everyone had been happy when the girl had received her first call-up two weeks earlier. Soon enough she would be rooming with a celebrity athlete, Kimby had joked.

They had found a group of people they knew and joined them. Kelley was back at trying to impress Emily, the girl she had a crush on and the other reason Kimby felt like a third wheel. She pulled out her phone to text her sisters who were also watching the Grammys. Karlie in NYC, and Kariann with Christen in their dorm room, not wanting to go out to party on a Sunday.

She texted back and forth with her sisters. Karlie let them know she had called Taylor and that her girlfriend was already on the way home, not feeling like going to the after-party. She hadn’t been very talkative and just wanted to be left alone. Kimby knew enough about the singer by now that she knew she took the loss very personal. She briefly considered showing Kelley the conversation as a joke, but then decided it was best to let the topic rest. They had already been clutching at straws enough trying to downplay Karlie’s acquaintance to Taylor.

A while later she decided to head home early. She wasn’t drunk enough and there were no interesting guys to talk to. Besides, she had an 8 am class the next day. She said goodbye to Kelley, who seemed to be attached to Emily’s hip, and texted Kariann that she would be back soon. The party was at a house not far from the dorm, so she decided not to call an uber for the short distance.

The air outside was cold, but a welcome change from the stuffy air at the party. Kimby took a deep breath and wrapped her scarf around her neck. She tucked her headphones in and started walking along the empty street, lost in her thoughts. There were some lights visible behind the curtains of the houses on the side of the street, but it was a quiet night.

Her thoughts got interrupted when she suddenly had a vision of herself being dragged into a car flash before her eyes. She looked around herself in panic and saw a car she hadn’t heard coming close behind her, slowing down as it approached. She shrieked and started running, but the car accelerated its speed and caught up to her.

When it reached her, two men quickly jumped out of the passenger and backseat and grabbed her. She wanted to scream, but before she could get a sound out one of them had already pressed his hand over her mouth. Her headphones fell out, but she didn’t care. She fumbled and kicked, but they were stronger and dragged her into the backseat of the car. They held her between them, and the car started driving off.

Kimby started crying and screaming, but she knew it was too late. She had no idea who these men were or what they wanted from her.

“You’re hurting me” she breathed out, but the men kept their strong grip on her arms to hold her in place.

“Don’t worry. Don’t resist and we won’t hurt you. We don’t want to do any harm” the blonde man with a big nose and scar on his left cheek who was sitting on her left said.

Kimby had a feeling she had seen his distinct face before, but she couldn’t remember where.

“You are already harming me” Kimby said sarcastically.

“What do you want from me?”

“You will see soon enough”, the corpulent, dark-skinned man on her right said.

Suddenly she felt the man on her left holding a rag over her mouth and nose and inhaled a sweet smell. She fumbled to pull it off, but her arms were held in place. After a few minutes in which neither of the men spoke, she could feel her consciousness fading, and then her body went limb and her surroundings went dark.

 

***

 

“This is weird” Kariann said.

“What is?” Christen asked from where she was lying on her bed, looking up from her book.

“Kimby texted me that she was leaving the party almost an hour ago, and she’s not yet here. She wanted to hang out with us for a while.”

Christen narrowed her eyebrows.

“Have you tried to call her yet?” she asked.

“No. I’ll do that now. Maybe she got caught up in something, but I’m worried. She has class tomorrow morning, and I know it’s still early in the semester, but she’s not the type to skip class for a stupid party” Kariann said worriedly.

She pulled up Kimby’s contact and pressed call, but her twin sister didn’t answer. She called again. This time it went straight to mailbox.

“Ok this is weird. She would always answer my calls. I’m worried now.”

Christen put her book down and sat up on her bed.

“Let’s call Kelley. They went to the party together” she suggested.

Kariann called Kelley. She could hear loud music and chatter in the background when the girl answered her phone.

“Kari? What’s up?” Kelley shouted.

Kariann held her phone further away from her ear.

“Is Kimby with you? She texted me that she’s leaving the party an hour ago, but she hasn’t arrived yet” Kariann informed her.

“Kimby? No, she left a while ago.”

“Did she leave alone?” Kariann asked.

“I think so. Yeah.” Kelley stated.

“Do you know if she called an uber or something?” Kariann asked further.

“I don‘t know, I don’t think so. We walked here.”

“Yeah, but you walked there _together_ ” Kariann emphasized the last word.

“Why didn’t you leave with her?” she added.

“Emily” Kelley simply stated, causing Kariann to groan.

“Ok, well, can you go outside and look for Kimby? I’m really worried. I tried to call her, but she didn’t answer. That’s unusual. I will come to the party as well, maybe something happened on the way” she said quickly.

“Alright. I will look for her. I hope she’s ok” Kelley replied, now understanding that something was off.

They hung up and Christen and Kariann quickly changed from their pajamas into real clothes, grabbed their coats and headed out.

Kariann didn’t know where the house was located, but Christen did, having been at a party there before during pre-season.

“It’s really not that far. A fifteen to twenty minute walk” she said worriedly.

The two girls kept looking to their left and right, worried that Kimby might have fallen down or something. Kariann realized she had no idea if Kimby had been drinking.

The night was quiet. _If Kimby was close, I would be able to hear her thoughts, and she would be calling out for me, silently or not_ , she thought.

When they turned into the street the house was located on, they saw Kelley, Emily and Megan coming towards them. The girls were looking in all directions as well.

“She’s not here” Kelley said out of breath when they approached Christen and Kariann.

“We didn’t see her either” Christen said.

Kariann almost said that she couldn’t hear her twin’s thoughts so she could not be close, but then remembered who she was with. She just nodded at the others instead.

They all looked at each other silently for a moment, processing what that new information meant.

Megan let out a deep breath and spoke up.

“I think … I think we should call the police” she said.

Kariann’s eyes went wide.

“But Kimby is not … oh.” She stopped mid-sentence.

“Yeah, you’re right. If we can’t find her and can’t reach her, that means she’s … missing, right?” she asked to no one in particular.

She teared up at the thought. Christen softly squeezed her shoulder.

“Yeah” her roommate said.

“Let’s tell someone as quickly as possible.”

Kariann suddenly felt unable to move or do anything at all. It was like her brain had stopped processing information the second she had realized that they couldn’t find her twin sister.

Kelley sprang into action.

“I’m calling the police. Let’s go back to the dorm and wake up Sue. She will know who else to contact” she said determinedly and quickly started walking into the direction of the campus while making the phone call.

She went ahead, so Kariann couldn’t hear what she told the police on the phone. Christen nudged her and pulled on her arm, silently telling her to go with them. The others seemed to get what was going on with Kariann and didn’t ask any questions, just silently walked back with her, following Kelley.

They woke up Sue, their resident assistant. The senior was on the basketball team and known for her kindness and leadership qualities on and off the court. Sue panicked for a second when she heard the news, before she realized that the freshmen were looking for her for help and were panicking themselves. She quickly regained her composure and got her phone from her room to call the dorm administrator. It was past midnight at this point, but this was an emergency.

“The police are on their way here” Kelley informed her friends who had all gathered in Christen and Kariann’s room. On the other side of the hallway, Kimby and Tobin’s room was eerily quiet and dark in contrast. Kelley had woken up her roommate Jewell who sleepily stood in the corner in her pajamas, trying to process what had happened. She quietly talked to her teammate Sue, always relying on the older student.

Kariann suddenly remembered that she should probably call her family. She took out her phone again, but only managed to stare at it. Christen, who hadn’t left her side since they had been back, gently nudged her arm.

“Call your family” she said softly.

“They need to know.”

“You’re right” Kariann said weakly.

A tear escaped her eye, and she quickly wiped it away with her sleeve.

Christen pulled her into a hug.

“Shh. We will find her, it will all be ok” she did her best to reassure her friend.

She didn’t know if she believed her own words, but it was all she could offer. Their room was full of people and the lights were too bright, and she could hear the police car arriving. Sue and some of the others went downstairs to meet them. All Christen wanted to do was go to sleep, or to wake up from this nightmare, but all she could do was hold on tightly to her roommate, hoping to find her twin sister.

 

***

 

Taylor looked at the ringing phone next to her on the mattress and saw that it was Karlie calling her. She wondered why her girlfriend would call her at what would be in the middle of the night on the east coast. She was busy eating In n Out burger and crying, clearly having told her she wanted to be left alone for the rest of the night. She answered nevertheless.

“Karlie? Why are you-“

“Taylor” Karlie said breathlessly.

“Kimby went missing.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!
> 
> Soo, did you see this coming? Let me know your thoughts on what will happen from here. (I already finished writing so I don't take requests haha :P)


	26. Twenty Six

When she came to, she was still sitting in the backseat of the car, but wasn’t being held in place anymore. She could hear the three men talking to each other and decided to not open her eyes yet or move in order to not alert them. The car was going at a high speed, and she felt exhausted. It felt like the middle of the night, and she had no idea where they were going.

“How long do you want to keep her?” the man on her right asked the man driving.

“Not long. A week maximum. We will find out about her magic tricks and their secret group, and then go public with it after we let her go. No one will know how we got our information because the public will be focused on us and our research” the driver said.

“If you say so, sir” the man said, and Kimby thought she could hear a hint of doubt in his voice.

 _What magic tricks?_ She thought. Were they talking about her?

 _Oh_.

It suddenly hit her. _They know about my skills? How? They want to expose the CA?_ she panicked internally, doing her best not to move.

 _Where’s Kariann?_ She suddenly thought. _Did they get her too?_ Where had Kariann been? Her memory of the night was fazed, and she couldn’t clearly recall what had happened.

_Oh, right. I was at this party. Then I went home by myself. That was a stupid idea. Kariann was in her room with Christen. Does this mean she’s safe?_

Then another realization hit her.

_What time is it? I should’ve been home a long time ago. They must be worried about me._

This caused her to finally open her eyes. She hastily fumbled around looking for her phone and purse, but couldn’t find them.

“She woke up” the man on her right suddenly said.

“Already?” the driver’s voice could be heard.

“We’re almost there. Watch her closely” he instructed, but Kimby was too tired to resist anyways.

A while later they drove off the highway and onto a bumpy road that led into a small town. It was dark outside and Kimby could only make out a few lights, but she was pretty sure she had never been here before. The place looked very rural and as they were driving through the small town, she could see that they were headed towards the very end of the town at the foot of a mountain with a deep forest. She panicked once again, but tried not to let it show.

They arrived in the driveway of a large house between trees, with no other houses around and only a dimly lit street light burning at the side of the road. The men grabbed her arm and lead her out of the car and towards the house. Kimby was so tired she didn’t even think about screaming for help. She was cold and wanted to sleep, or to wake up from this bad dream. The strong grip of the men’s hands made the dream feel eerily real, however.

The house was dark and quiet, and the driver unlocked the front door. Without switching on any lights, he led them into the house. They went down the stairs into the basement, and Kimby started feeling scared once again. The man who had been driving and whose house they seemed to be in opened another door and finally switched on a light in the room as they entered.

To Kimby’s surprise, it was not a dungeon or prison cell like she had expected, but a rather spacious office, with a desk and bookshelves on one side and a camp bed on the other. The man quietly closed the door behind them, then spoke up.

“You will sleep there” he said towards Kimby, pointing at the camp bed.

The student was so tired, she just nodded at him. She was seeing his face for the first time. He seemed to be middle-aged, judging from his balding head, and was tall and pale.

“Don’t even try to flee. We will guard the room all night. You cannot open the windows. That is, unless you want to give us an exclusive show of your witchcraft” he said, smirking.

Kimby shuddered. She didn’t know what to say to that.

“Do you need anything?” the man continued harshly, as if he didn’t actually care for her well-being and the question had popped into his head as an afterthought.

“My phone?” Kimby said hopefully.

The three men burst out laughing.

“No, sorry kid. Anything else?”

“I have to pee” she said, feeling humiliated.

The man sighed.

“Jackson, escort her to the toilet, there’s a small guest bathroom here in the basement, on the left” he instructed.

The dark-skinned man nodded and gestured towards Kimby to follow her. He didn’t grab her arm this time, but made sure she didn’t have a chance to run up the stairs. He waited for her in front of the bathroom, and then guided her back towards the office.

“We will come back early in the morning. Get some sleep, kid. And don’t try to escape, two of us will always be in front of this door, and we will lock it from outside” the tall man reiterated, then the three men retreated.

Kimby sunk down on the camp bed. To her surprise, there was a still packaged women’s pajama lying on it. _Wow, such hospitality_ , she thought to herself and snort-laughed. How had she gotten into this situation? She was too exhausted to think about it any longer. Hoping that there were no cameras installed in the room, she quickly changed into the pajamas and tucked herself into bed. She fell asleep quickly and into a deep and dreamless sleep.

 

***

 

She woke up to loud knocking on the door. When she opened her eyes she looked around herself in panick, not recognizing the unfamiliar surroundings. Then the memory of the night came rushing back. She groaned and put her pillow over her head. The knocking continued.

“Wake up! We will serve you breakfast in a few minutes!” she heard one of the men’s voices from behind the door.

She looked around the room. There was some daylight coming in through the small windows that were high up the wall on one side, and from what she could tell it was not entirely bright outside. Her eyes fell on a clock on the wall. It showed a little after 8 am. She groaned again. She couldn’t have slept for more than a few hours. She lay down on the camp bed again, the mattress uncomfortably soft. A tear escaped her eye, and she let herself feel scared and vulnerable for the first time since she had been dragged into the car. She started sobbing, confused and terrified of what was happening.

The door opened unexpectedly, and the quickly wiped her face with the sleeve of the pajama. It still smelled of the plastic package it had been in, and the scent did nothing to comfort her. She looked towards the door and saw the blonde man with the scar on his face enter the room with a tray. She noticed that he had a limp in his right leg. He put the tray down next to the bed without looking at her face, then silently left the room again.

Kimby looked at the tray and almost laughed. There was a plate with two sandwiches and a steaming mug of tea, as well as a pre-sliced apple on it. _Who do these people think they are?_ , she thought. _Do they want to make me feel like I’m on holiday so I oversee the fact that they literally kidnapped me?_ But she realized that she was hungry and started eating. The food didn’t taste good, but it was better than nothing and better like stale bread and water like in a movie, she thought.

As she looked around the room while she was eating, her eyes landed on the clock again. _Shit,_ she thought. _I have class right now_. She stopped mid-chew. _Did the others notice I’m gone? Are they looking for me? I don’t even know where I am. My phone is gone._ She somehow managed to eat the rest of the food, having lost her appetite. When she was done she lay down on the bed again, waiting for what was going to happen next.

 

***

 

Karlie rushed out of the baggage claim and into the lobby of Lambert-St Louis Airport, her bag carelessly thrown over her shoulder. She spotted her mom waiting for her and quickly approached her, then wrapped her into a tight hug. She started crying at the comfort of her mother’s presence. They separated, and she noticed the dark circles under her mother’s eyes. The woman hadn’t slept all night either.

“I’m so happy you’re here, Karlie. Let’s go home” her mom said softly and took her bag from her.

Karlie just nodded. She had caught the earliest flight on Monday morning after learning of her sister’s disappearance the night before. She wanted to be there for her family and felt useless being in New York.

“Kristine is on her way to UNC” her mom informed her as they were driving home.

“We decided that it’s best that Kariann stays there in case Kimby somehow shows up again, but we didn’t want to leave her alone” she added.

“Yeah, that’s good” Karlie said.

“Apparently Kariann’s RA arranged for Kristine to stay at an unoccupied dorm room at the grad student’s dorm, so she will be on campus” her mother continued.

“That’s good” Karlie repeated, not knowing what else to say.

Neither of them had made sense of the situation yet, and the police that had looked for Kimby during the night hadn’t found any clues, either. Kimby had simply disappeared on the short way home from the party. Kariann had told her how their friend Kelley felt guilty, having made the girl walk on her own at night, but she knew that the friend wasn’t to blame. Something out of their control must’ve happened, she was sure of it.

They arrived home after a while, and Karlie hugged her father, who looked battered as well. Even Joe the dog seemed to sense there was something wrong and let himself be quietly picked up by Karlie, not leaving her side once she had stepped into the house.

They all sat down on the couch in the living room, not knowing what to do with the situation. They were waiting for the next police report, or a phone call. Or anything, really.

“Mom? Dad?” Karlie asked after a while.

“Yeah?” her mom asked.

“I just wanted to let you know that Taylor is coming here from LA today. I called her last night to tell her what had happened, and she said she wants to be there for me. Please don’t freak out. She will stay at a hotel downtown” she explained carefully.

“Karlie …” her dad started.

“Why do you have to bring her into this?” he asked, annoyance in his voice.

“Because she’s my girlfriend?” Karlie asked unsure.

“We know that, honey” her mother said softly.

“And we are not opposed to you dating a woman, you know that. But with her celebrity status and all … I don’t think she will be of any help to us right now, she will only cause more commotion” she continued.

Karlie couldn’t help but feel hurt by her mother’s statement.

“She’s not staying over here. And she wants to be there for me. She’s a great person and a good girlfriend, you know. She cares about me a lot, and she knows the twins too. It wouldn’t be fair to exclude her. I know you haven’t met her yet, but please, don’t take this out on her. It has nothing to do with her” she pleaded.

Her dad sighed.

“Fine. But she cannot stay here. And I don’t want to get in trouble because of her” he said.

“No, I promise, dad. Thank you. She will text me when she arrives in St Louis and then come over later today.” Karlie smiled weakly at her parents. She was sure that they would just have to get to know Taylor to realize how good the older girl was for her.

“I’m going to take a nap” Karlie announced and got up from the couch. Her parents just nodded.

She went into her childhood bedroom and lay down on her bed. She tried not to look at all the pictures of herself and her sisters on the walls.

When she checked her phone, her friends had replied. She had only texted them in a hurry in the morning, letting them know what had happened and that she would go home for a few days. Her friends were shocked and told her to call them immediately if she needed them or had any news. Derek had texted her a screenshot of an online news article earlier that was about ‘a UNC freshman going missing Sunday night, police are investigating’. Karlie didn’t want to read it. It didn’t say anything she didn’t know already, anyways.

Just when she had put her phone on the bedside table and tried to close her eyes, her phone rang. She grabbed her phone and saw that it was Cara.

“Karlie!” her friend’s voice sounded frantic on the other side of the line.

“I just read your text. Oh my god. I’m so sorry. What happened?”

“I don’t know, Cara” Karlie said exhaustedly.

“Listen, Karlie, I know I haven’t been around much these days. I’m so sorry. I still care about you a lot, you know that, right? I’ve been such a shitty friend. I hope you can find Kimby soon” she rambled, and Karlie could hear her friend’s voice break.

“Yeah” was all she could say.

She heard Cara crying.

“Karlie, I’m so sorry this happened to you. I can’t even imagine. I hope she’s alright. I hope they find her” Cara repeated.

“Thank you, Cara” Karlie said sincerely.

It was true, she hadn’t been talking much to Cara in the last two months or so. The reason being Alex, who was about to go abroad for a while, so Cara wanted to spend as much time with her as possible, however neglecting her other friends over that.

“I’m so sorry” Cara repeated again.

“Alex got really angry when I told her how I haven’t seen you in a while and neglected you because of her. And now this. I’m so sorry. I miss you, Karls” she sobbed.

“Shh, Cara” Karlie comforted her friend.

“It’s ok now. I forgive you. Thank you for calling me. I know you’re still my friend. Sometimes we get caught up in things. I have no idea what happened to Kimby, but we all hope we can find her safely. We have to” she said softly. Even though it was her who needed comforting, she found herself comforting her friend nevertheless.

They talked for a while longer, then hung up. Karlie tried to sleep, but could only lie on her bed and stare at the ceiling. She hated when things were out of her control, but now all she could do was wait.


	27. Twenty Seven

“So, we will now show you something, and you will tell us what you think about it” the tall, pale man announced.

He and the other two had carried chairs into the office and made themselves comfortable on them, with a cup of coffee next to each of them. They had offered some to Kimby as well, but she had declined. She was still in her pajamas, not wanting to change back into her clothes from the day before, but had pulled her coat over them, feeling cold in the basement room.

The man turned his laptop towards her and started playing a video. Kimby winced when she saw what it was. She could see Taylor perform her last song in St Louis, then going down the stairs in the middle of the stage, almost tripping and falling but instead hovering down the stairs, landing safely and continuing after a second as if nothing had happened. So they really knew about her conjuring skills, she thought.

“So?” the man asked when the video had ended but Kimby hadn’t moved.

“Oh. Hmm, looks interesting” she started, deciding to play dumb.

“Interesting, huh? Yeah we thought so, too. Which was why we investigated a little. Are you sure you don’t have to tell us something about what happened there?” he smirked.

Kimby shuddered.

“I don’t know what you mean, sir” she said.

“Don’t play dumb!” the man said raising his voice.

“You were at this concert, weren’t you? With your sisters?” he asked.

Kimby’s eyes went wide.

“We know more about you than you think” the man spoke again and smirked.

He nudged the blonde man with the scar on his face, who had brought her breakfast earlier.

“We do” the man confirmed.

“You go to UNC with your sister. And we know you’re a magician” he stated, sounding sure of himself.

Kimby almost laughed at the word he used. _Magician?_ She didn’t correct him. Instead, she gulped, not knowing what to say. Her silence was taken as confirmation.

“And was it you or your sister who prevented your friend from getting burnt and injured when you were cooking together?” the dark-skinned man spoke up.

Kimby felt her heart beating out of her chest. How did these men know so much about her? Had she been this careless?

“Who is making you keep your witchcraft a secret?” the man in the middle asked.

Kimby gulped again, but didn’t reply.

“Talk to us, kid. We don’t want to harm you. We just want the truth” he continued.

“You see, we think that you could do so much more good in the world if you didn’t have to hide your skills. And you seem to want to do good too, from what we know about you. So, who is keeping you from it?” he asked again.

Kimby just stared at them. She was not going to tell them about the CA, she swore herself. She couldn’t do that to Mrs Yanez, the others and herself. It was true that she was often upset about the strict rules, but she wasn’t going to give in to these strange men.

They heard a woman’s voice calling from upstairs.

“Oh, my wife is calling me. I’ll be right back” the tall man announced, leaving Kimby alone with the other two.

After a while he returned with another man. He looked at Kimby timidly, then whispered something to the house-owner. He was pale and small, and had freckles on his face. He looked familiar to Kimby, but she couldn’t place him.

“Sit down, O’Hara” the house-owner instructed the new man and gestured towards another empty chair.

“We will have her perform some magic tricks. I’m sure she has some tricks up her sleeve” he grinned.

Kimby felt nauseous. She had never really used her skills without Kariann, and what did they want her to do anyways? She wasn’t _that_ skilled. But they didn’t know that. She wondered what to do, when the name of the new man rang a bell, and she looked at his face again. Suddenly, she put two and two together.

 _O’Hara? And the familiarity of his face?_ She thought. _Does … does Kelley have anything to do with this?_

 

***

 

Taylor awkwardly stood in the Kloss’s kitchen, not knowing what to do with herself. She tried to convince herself that coming here had been the right choice and that she wanted to be there for Karlie, but her girlfriend’s parents’ behavior made her question that choice. They were in the living room talking, but she could hear them nevertheless. She had been introduced to them when she had arrived earlier, but they had not been welcoming.

Karlie called Taylor to come into the living room, and the singer carefully went. Karlie gestured towards her to sit on the couch, and she sat down close to where Joe the dog was stretched out at the foot of the couch on the carpet, petting his head while sitting down. She wasn’t a dog person, but she had immediately loved this one, and was glad that at least one member of this household wasn’t hostile towards her.

“Taylor, I’m sorry for how I treated you earlier” Karlie’s mother started.

“But you have to understand how difficult this situation is for us, and you’re not making it any better. That being said, I appreciate that you want to be there for Karlie. I was just overwhelmed earlier when I saw your bodyguards” she continued.

Taylor just nodded. She had asked her bodyguards to wait in the car to not make the family uncomfortable.

“I think I just need to still get used to you being in Karlie’s life in this way” Karlie’s mother added.

“I understand that, Mrs Kloss. Please take your time” she said.

“You can call me Tracy” Karlie’s mother said conciliatorily.

“Thank you, Tracy” Taylor smiled weakly.

“You are welcome to stay here for the day, but we are glad that you are staying at a hotel, even though Karlie wasn’t happy about it” Karlie’s dad said.

“Oh, and you can call me Kurt” he added.

“Thank you” Taylor repeated.

She was glad that while Karlie’s parents were still distant towards her, they didn’t want to make her uncomfortable. Her own parents had asked Karlie to call them by their first names immediately.

After all, they had wanted to give this introduction a little more time until Karlie’s parents would be more accepting of Taylor, but the events from last night had been sweeping those plans off, and they hadn’t thought about them anymore.

They were silent for a while until Taylor spoke up again.

“May I say something about Kimby’s disappearance?” she asked carefully.

The three Klosses looked at her with wide eyes. Karlie’s dad nodded carefully.

“Obviously I have no idea what happened either, but have you contacted the CA yet? What if this has anything to do with her conjuring skills?” she asked.

Karlie gasped.

“I … we hadn’t considered that yet” Karlie’s mom said truthfully.

“But we can’t tell that to the police” she added.

“I know, that’s why I thought about contacting someone from the CA. I don’t know, it’s just a gut feeling I have” Taylor said cautiously.

“Well we have no further information so far, so we should consider every possible scenario” her dad said.

“I will call Mrs Yanez” Tracy said.

“She knows the twins, and she’s the chairperson of the CA of Missouri. Maybe she can help.”

“I’m going to call my uncle Patrick and ask him what he thinks” Taylor said.

 

***

 

After they had made their phone calls, Taylor and Karlie hung out in the student’s bedroom. It was around noon, but neither of them were hungry yet. They were wearing comfortable clothes and cuddling on the small couch, Taylor holding Karlie tightly in her arms trying to comfort her.

“I’m so glad you’re here” Karlie said.

Taylor gave her a soft kiss on her head.

“I’m glad I’m here too. I’m sorry for causing your parents trouble. They’re going through a lot right now” she said quietly.

“I know” Karlie replied.

“But they had no right to be so hostile to you. It’s not your fault” she added.

Taylor hummed in response.

Karlie felt herself tearing up again. She was worried about her little sister. They were constantly texting with Kariann and Kristine, but they didn’t have any news either so far. They were all just waiting, not knowing what to do. The police were in contact with them, but all they knew for sure was that Kimby was not on or near campus. They suspected that she must’ve used a vehicle to go away, not being able to find her within walking distance from the college.

Karlie silently cried in Taylor’s arms, and the older girl rocked her back and forth. She felt like crying too, and had done her fair share of that the night before, but felt that she needed to be strong for her girlfriend. She couldn’t believe that it had been less than 24 hours since her Grammy loss. It all felt so far away and unimportant to her right now.

After a while they heard the doorbell ring and Karlie’s mom answer it. Then they could hear Mrs Yanez’ voice from downstairs. They sat up and went downstairs to greet the CA chairperson. She was flabbergasted when she saw Taylor coming down the stairs behind Karlie.

“Miss Swift?” she asked.

“What are you doing here?”

Despite everything, Taylor and Karlie couldn’t help but giggle.

“Long story” Taylor said and shook Mrs Yanez’ hand. Karlie followed suit.

They went into the living room to talk. Before long, they could hear the doorbell ring again and looked at each other in surprise. They weren’t expecting any more visitors.

Karlie’s mom rushed to the front door, and a police officer entered the house. He followed Tracy into the living room, then spoke up.

“I’m here on the case of the disappearance of Kimberly Kloss” he stated and cleared his throat.

“My colleagues in North Carolina are investigating the case carefully. I’ve been dispatched to inform you that they found Kimberly’s phone on the side of the road at Interstate 85.”


	28. Twenty Eight

Kariann was in her dorm room, lying on her bed and mindlessly scrolling through her social media. She hadn’t been able to focus on much since Kimby had gone missing two nights earlier, and had been excused from her classes to take care of her mental health. Her older sister Kristine was sitting on the chair at her desk, trying to read a book. But from the way she looked up every few minutes and glanced out of the window Kariann knew that she wasn’t able to focus either. Nevertheless, she was just glad to have her older sister there with her.

Christen was lying on her bed as well at the opposite side of the room, texting away on her phone. Kariann knew she was texting Tobin who was still at January camp with the national team. Usually her roommate’s constant thinking about the other soccer player got on Kariann’s nerves and she blocked Christen’s thoughts out as well as she could, but today it was a welcome distraction. She only felt a little guilty for blatantly listening to the girl’s secrets, but her roommate would tell her about them sooner or later anyways. They had become quite close, and Kariann was happy to have her in her life.

Suddenly Christen spoke into the quietness of the room.

“Do you mind if I Facetime with Tobin? Or should I go out of the room?” she asked.

“No, it’s alright. I wanna say hi to her too” Kariann replied, and Kristine just shrugged.

Christen put Tobin on video chat, and Kariann scooted over to Christen’s side to sit next to her.

“Hey Kariann!” Tobin greeted, sounding genuinely excited to see her roommate’s twin, but also sounding careful and sad. She had of course been informed about Kimby’s disappearance and Christen had had to convince her to stay at camp and not come back to college.

“Hey Tobin!” Kariann greeted back and waved.

“Are there any news?” Tobin asked directly.

“No, nothing we haven’t told you yet. The police found her phone yesterday at the side of the Interstate 85 so they now think she was taken out of state by car, and the police in three different states is now involved” Kariann sighed.

Tobin closed her eyes. Kariann wished she could hear the girl’s thoughts, but it never worked through video calls. Conjuring skills really needed to catch up with modern technology, she always joked.

“I hope they find her quickly. I’m so sorry. I miss you guys” Tobin said sadly.

“We miss you too” Christen replied softly, and Kariann agreed.

“How’s camp?” she asked to change the topic.

Their conversations about Kimby only went in circles and they came to no conclusions. Kariann knew that the CA had been contacted because Taylor thought it could have to do with Kimby’s skills, but Mrs Yanez hadn’t come to a conclusion yet, either.

Tobin told them about how training went, how nice the other players that she had adored for years and now finally got to play with were, and how she hoped to get a few minutes in the first match of the year against France on the weekend.

They ended the call a while later, but Kariann kept sitting next to Christen and they talked about this and that. Suddenly there was a soft knock on the door, and when Christen called out to the person to come in, Kelley appeared in the doorframe.

“Hey KO” Christen greeted her teammate by her nickname.

“What’s up?”

Kelley, usually loud and out-going, didn’t reply and just quietly entered the room, then sat next to the girls on the bed. Kristine looked at the scene in bewilderment from the other side of the room.

Kelley cleared her throat.

“I … this is super weird. Umm … my uncle just texted me his location. We don’t usually text each other aside from in the family group chat. But I … I think it has something to do with Kimby” she said quietly.

The other three gasped. Kristine got up from the chair and went towards the others.

“What makes you think that?” Kariann asked.

Kelley showed them the message on her phone.

“He only texted his location, which is Salem, Georgia. I have never heard of this place. He lives in Atlanta. It seems to be a small town near the National Forest near the state border to South Carolina. He only added ‘KK’.”

Kariann’s eyes went wide when she saw the text.

“What does this mean?” Christen asked with a toneless voice.

“I don’t know. It’s strange. I don’t know what this has to do with anything. But it looks like something, doesn’t it? KK? Your and her initials? And Interstate 85 goes through Georgia …” Kelley trailed off.

Christen jumped up from the bed.

“We need to tell the police! Come on!”

Kristine sprang into action and took her phone from the desk, then called the officer who was in charge of their case. Kelley forwarded her uncle’s message to Kariann, who forwarded it to her family, explaining their suspicion to them, and they forwarded it to the police.

A few minutes later, they received a call from their mom.

“Kristine! Kariann! The police are taking the hint very seriously and immediately dispatched colleagues in Georgia to the location. The exact location is a house at the end of a town called Salem, near the forest. We are going to keep you up to date!” she informed them hastily.

Kariann felt her heart beating out of her chest. Was this it? Was this the hint that would take them to Kimby? But what did Kelley have to do with this? She looked at her friend, who was sitting motionlessly on Christen’s bed.

“Hey, are you ok?” she asked and sat down next to her, pulling the girl into a side hug.

“No … I’m thinking about a lot of things right now” she said quietly, then she started crying.

Kariann didn’t know what was going on in the girl’s head, her thoughts were all over the place and she couldn’t filter any clear thoughts out, but she held on to her friend and let her cry.

“I hope I’m wrong, but I don’t think I am.” Kelley said quietly after a few moments.

Kristine and Christen looked at her confused.

“I think this is all my fault, after all” the freckled soccer player mumbled.

 

***

 

The police car came to a stop in the wide driveway between the trees. The officers, two men and two women, quickly jumped out. They had no idea what to expect. They could see lights burning inside the house, but nothing suspicious. The air was cold and the sky was cloudy on this Tuesday afternoon in rural Georgia.

The front door opened and a middle-aged woman appeared at the threshold before the officers could ring the doorbell. The woman wanted to say something, but one of the officers beat her to it.

“Are you Mrs Schulzenberger?” he asked, reading the name on the door plate.

“Yes, I am” the woman said confused.

“What are you doing here, sir? I did not call the police.”

“We are under the suspicion that a young woman is being held against her will in your house” the officer explained calmly.

“Excuse me? I am a righteous and honest woman. You must be mistaken” she replied.

“Is there anyone else home?” the officer asked unaffected.

“Yes, my husband and his friends. They are in the office in the basement” she said clueless.

The police officers looked at each other.

“Mrs Schulzenberger, we would like to talk to your husband. We are coming in now” he stated and without waiting for an answer, walked into the house, pushing the woman aside lightly.

The other officers followed suit, and all the woman could do was stare at them with her eyes wide open. She had no idea what this commotion was about.

She finally moved, closed the door and followed the officers into the house and down the stairs.

“This is the office” she pointed to a door opposite of the stairs.

The police men and women looked at each other again. They didn’t know what to expect behind the closed door, but mentally prepared for the worst.

“His friends have stayed over the last two nights” the woman suddenly started.

“I never go into the office, he doesn’t want me to” she added.

One of the officers put a hand on her arm to calm her nerves.

“Please stay calm. We are indeed suspecting your husband of a crime, but you are not involved. Please do not interrupt anything we do” she said and smiled weakly at the woman.

Mrs Schulzenberger nodded and carefully took a few steps backwards up the stairs, not wanting to be in the way.

One of the officers opened the door, levelling his gun.

They could hear a sudden commotion in the room behind it, and a tall man came rushing towards the door but stopped when it had opened completely and he saw the policemen and women standing there and his wife on the stairs in the background.

“What …” he started, but one of the officers was quick to grab him by the shoulders. He was tall, but the officer was taller and bulkier, and well trained. He didn’t handcuff him yet, just made sure he couldn’t lash out on his colleagues.

The officers entered the room and stared at the scene in front of them in bewilderment. There were three other men in the room, two of them sitting on chairs, one standing in the middle of the room. And the college student they had been looking for was sitting on a camp bed on the left side of the room in her pajamas. It looked like they had been talking to each other.

One of the men started screaming at the house-owner and the police officers when he saw them come inside, telling them to stop interrupting their business. The other two men looked shocked, but also relieved. The young woman had put her head in her hands at the sight of the officers and started crying. One of the police women rushed over to her to make sure she was safe.

The other officers lowered their guns when they realized the other men did not have any themselves. One of them spoke into his phone, ordering more colleagues to come to the house. Mrs Schulzenberger stood motionlessly in the doorframe, staring at her husband.

“We have no idea what happened here, but you are under arrest” one of the men spoke up. The man who had been standing next to Mr Schulzenberger immediately put handcuffs around his wrists before he could regain his composure and start moving. Mr Schulzenberger started protesting and screaming at the officers, the other men and then his wife.

The blonde man swerved around the officer who approached him.

“This is none of your business! You don’t know what’s happening here! We are not harming this young woman! Do you not see she is fully clothed and not injured? We are investigating! We-“ he stopped, out of breath.

The man seemed well trained and didn’t let the officer get a hold of him, but he couldn’t move very well due to a limp in his leg, and soon two officers were holding him to the ground and putting handcuffs on his wrists.

“It doesn’t matter what it looks like” the officer said.

“You kidnapped a young woman.”

“It was for her own good!” the man protested, but was interrupted by one of his friends.

“It’s over now. What we were doing was wrong” he said, his voice shaking.

Mr Schulzenberger yelled at him from across the room.

“O’Hara! Did you call the cops? I should have gotten rid of you a long time ago! You were never a hundred percent committed!” he shouted angrily.

Mr O’Hara looked at the police man with fear in his eyes.

He put handcuffs on him nevertheless, but tried to reassure the small man.

“You will have a lot of explaining to do. Was it you who sent the text message?” he asked, and Mr O’Hara simply nodded.

Mrs Schulzenberger had started crying and was looking at her husband in confusion.

“How could you have done this? I had no idea there was a girl in our basement! How long has this been going on?” she cried hysterically.

Her husband only scoffed at her.

“What do you know about these things? Why did you let the damn cops into the house?”

“Back-up is on its way” the officer who had made the phone call announced through all of the commotion.

Kimby was led out of the room and upstairs, her coat loosely hanging over her shoulders. She felt relieved, but gross and humiliated at the same time. She hadn’t stopped crying since the friendly police woman had assured her it would all be ok when she had approached her.

She was led into the police car and sat down.

“We are now going to wait for more police to show up, and then we will take you to the hospital just as a precaution. Did they physically assault you?” the officer asked with a concerned voice.

Kimby only shook her head. She was exhausted from the lack of sleep, the constant interrogations and the effort the demonstration of her conjuring skills had taken her.

“I will call your parents now” the officer said softly.

“It’s going to be ok.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading!  
> I can now confirm that there will be a sequel, I'm currently still collecting ideas and crafting a plot.  
> If anyone has requests feel free to comment what you'd like to read, though I can't promise I will use it. :P
> 
> PS: I'm so excited for the Delicate MV it's almost embarrassing.


	29. Twenty Nine

Taylor squeezed Karlie’s hand as they were sitting down on the couch in the Kloss family’s living room. The room had well exceeded its capacity, and chairs had been brought into the room, causing everyone to sit closely together. Next to Karlie on the couch to her right were the twins, their dog Joe sitting on Kimby’s lap. Other than that, her parents, Kristine, Mrs Yanez and two police officers were present.

It had all happened so fast suddenly. They had gotten Kariann’s message and the police’s phone call the day before about a hint they had received. A little over an hour later, they had gotten another phone call that Kimby was safe. The connection had been bad, but they had been relieved to hear Kimby’s voice at the other end of the line.

Now it was the next morning, and the police was there for interrogation. After Kimby had been checked for any physical injuries at the hospital in the small Georgian town, she had been immediately brought to St Louis to her parents’ house. The girl had been exhausted and was too tired to answer questions, so she had only eaten and gone to sleep. Karlie and her parents had been shocked to see Kimby in the state she was in, but were beyond relieved to have her back. Kristine and Kariann had arrived later that night from North Carolina.

“Before I begin, I see that there are people present who do not belong to the family. I am afraid I must ask you to leave” the officer who had informed them about the discovery of Kimby’s phone two days earlier spoke up.

“They are allowed to be here. It’s fine” Tracy said determinedly.

All she wanted was for this nightmare to be over.

“I actually am Kimberly’s therapist” Mrs Yanez chimed in and pulled out her ID.

Karlie was surprised. She hadn’t known of the woman’s occupation. She wasn’t actually Kimby’s therapist, but she had already announced she would talk to her in detail about what had happened.

“And you …?” the officer said towards Taylor.

He looked confused as to how Taylor Swift of all people was involved in this case and was clearly uncomfortable in the singer’s presence.

“She can stay too. Please let us begin” Tracy said with annoyance in her voice.

Taylor smiled at her thankfully, not having expected the woman to stand up for her.

“Very well” the officer said defeated.

“I will start by saying that we have taken the four men into custody. The main suspect is the house-owner, who seems to be the boss of their group. So far he has refused to answer questions, but two of the other men have been more talkative. We are under the impression that the man who secretly sent the text to alert us is related to your friend?” he directed the question to Kimby.

She fiddled with the hem of her shirt and didn’t look up.

“Yeah” she said quietly.

“I started figuring it out when I heard his name for the first time. His face had looked familiar” she added.

“But I don’t know how or why there is a connection.”

“Your friend has told us that she is willing to make a statement about her suspicions of her uncle, and he himself will too” the officer stated.

Kimby still didn’t look up. Kariann had talked to Kelley about the subject, but she hadn’t clearly understood what her friend meant, the girl having merely rambled and cried.

“Please tell us what kind of information the men wanted to get out of you” the policewoman said softly. It was the same one who had led Kimby out of the house the day before.

Kimby took a deep breath.

“I … they were convinced that I am a witch, and that I have magical powers” she laughed bitterly.

Mrs Yanez took in a sharp breath.

The police officers looked at Kimby.

“Yeah, we found notes in the office. Apparently they were a group dedicated to researching supernatural phenomena” the woman stated.

“The notes said that you performed skills for them. Such as, making books hover in the air and letting items appear at their request” she continued.

“Is that true?”

Karlie held her breath.

“No, of course not, officer. I am not able to do such things” Kimby said weakly.

“Miss Kloss, we are not sure what to make of this case. The group had clearly singled you out when they kidnapped you, and there must have been a reason they chose you. They talked about a video that they thought was in connection to you. If you didn’t perform tricks for them, then what did you do all day? Why didn’t they let you go?” the officer asked.

“Because … because they were convinced I was lying to them. They were crazy” Kimby said, her voice shaking.

Mrs Yanez spoke up.

“Sir, you do not actually think that this young woman has supernatural powers? Do you believe these delusional men? They were clearly insane, there is nothing serious or scientific about their research and their approach. Are you taking them seriously and not believing the victim?” she accused.

The officer sighed. The other officer spoke up.

“We understand the difficulty of the situation. But we have to clarify what happened. We obviously do not believe what the men thought, but we have to understand their motive” she said.

Tracy got up and went to the kitchen to get a glass of water. The interrogation was already taking a toll on her nerves.

“Well, they were clearly delusional. Or did you see any video evidence of me performing magic tricks?” she said sarcastically, knowing full well that Mr O’Hara had been taking videos but deleted them without the other men’s knowledge to protect Kimby.

“No” the woman replied.

“The house owner insisted they had taken videos, but the man who took them must have deleted them. That is very suspicious, but there is nothing we can do about it now” she said.

They continued talking about the way Kimby had been treated and what the men’s motives could have been. Kimby’s reappearance had of course made its rounds in the news already, and there were all sorts of rumors about her disappearance. The officers wanted to contain the damage that had already been done, but they had to look into the group’s motives for their ‘research’. They needed to find answers for why grown men and women dedicated their time to research ‘witchcraft’ and went to such lengths as to kidnap a college student, while the victim insisted she had nothing to do with it.

An hour or so later the officers finally left, wanting to continue the interrogation another time.

 

***

 

Mrs Yanez let out a deep sigh as soon as they were out the door.

“We really need to convince them of the shadiness of that research group and that there is nothing to their claims. We do not need this kind of media attention” she said.

Everyone else agreed.

“But now that they’re gone, Kimby, please tell us what really happened” she added with a smirk.

Kimby laughed. After she had slept, showered and eaten more than the sandwiches she had been offered in the basement, she had regained her usual agility and could almost laugh at the situation. She was relieved to be with her family again. But she knew that she would need lots of time to process everything and had already agreed to let Mrs Yanez be her therapist for the next few weeks, the CA chairwoman’s occupation being convenient so they wouldn’t have to involve an outsider who she couldn’t fully disclose everything to.

Kimby told them about the skills she had been asked to perform, and how much the men knew about conjurers.

“They kept calling us magicians and witches, it was almost hilarious” she said.

“But I was so bad without Kariann. I had the biggest headache after I made one book hover in the air. They asked me to lift one of them into the air, recreating what happened at Taylor’s concert, but I couldn’t do it. I was so worried they were gonna kidnap Kariann too just to have us perform our skills together” she said more seriously and squeezed her twin’s hand.

“To be honest with you, we did know of the group’s existence” Mrs Yanez said suddenly.

Everyone looked at her in disbelief.

“They were only founded a few years ago, and they have a website. We just never took them seriously” she said sheepishly.

“They cannot be taken seriously” Kimby said reconciliatory.

“Their boss was just obsessed with the idea of supernatural powers and wanted to own them. The other one wanted to save the world. The other two seemed like they somehow got dragged into it but didn’t approve of my kidnapping” she added.

Suddenly Taylor’s phone rang in her pocket. She guiltily looked at the others but quickly answered the call when she saw it was Tree calling her. She got up and left the room.

The others continued talking. When Taylor came back, she gave everyone an apologetic look.

“My publicist just called me. She wanted to know when I’m coming back. And she said that I’ve been spotted here in St Louis by fans and that there are rumors on the internet about why I’m here, and rumors about my connection to Kimby’s case because I’m here at the same time. I will deal with this later” she sighed and sat down again next to Karlie.

“We need to rethink how we deal with your celebrity status” Mrs Yanez said seriously.

“You have not been talked about in connection to us since the summer, and we don’t want any attention” she reiterated.

“I know” Taylor sighed.

“We will find a way.”

They continued their talk until Mrs Yanez had to leave.

Suddenly, Taylor realized she was alone with the whole Kloss family.

“Do you want me to leave as well?” she quietly said to Karlie.

They were in the kitchen, Karlie’s dad and sisters arguing about which take-out place to order from. They had been living off of take-out for the past two days, none of them having the motivation to cook a full meal. Karlie was already getting sick of it and couldn’t wait until her eating habits went back to normal.

“No, please stay” Karlie answered and hugged the singer tightly.

“I don’t want you to leave.”

Taylor just hummed in response.

After they had agreed to order pizza, they all went back into the living room.

Karlie took the opportunity to properly introduce Taylor to Kristine and her parents.

“I’m sorry for being hostile towards you” Tracy said.

“Now that Kimby is back and I can breathe again, I can finally look you in the eyes. You have caused my daughters a lot of trouble, with the video and the paparazzi photos, but I now realize it’s not your fault personally” she added.

Karlie let out the breath she had been holding.

“Thank you for your honest words” Taylor said and smiled.

“I understand if you still need to get used to my presence. But I am happy that you accept me now.”

“I think I still need to get used to you being here” Kristine said and giggled.

“This is like … really weird. But I’m happy for you two.”

Karlie and Taylor smiled at each other.

“Did we ever tell you that they told us first?” Kimby chimed in.

“What? How long have you known?” Kristine asked.

“Since Taylor’s birthday” Kimby grinned.

“I’ve known long-“ Kariann started but was interrupted by her twin.

“Yes we know, you’ve known longer because you can’t stay out of other people’s thoughts” she said, making everyone laugh.

“You’re such a creep. I bet you know all about Christen and Tob-“ she added but earned an elbow into her side from Kariann.

“I’m so glad you’re back” Kristine grinned at her younger siblings.

“Thank you for being there for Karlie” Kurt spoke up towards Taylor.

“I’m sure we will get used to your presence after things have gone back to normal. All we need is time” he added.

“Thank you” Taylor said and smiled genuinely.

They talked more about what to do in the upcoming days, and the pizza arrived meanwhile. Kimby wanted to get back to college as soon as possible, missing her friends and wanting to talk to Kelley especially. Her parents convinced her to stay until Friday to process everything that had happened and to be able to talk to the police and Mrs Yanez, and Kimby agreed. Kariann would stay with her and they would go back to college on the weekend.

 

***

 

When Karlie reached out to interlace her fingers with Taylor’s, the singer quickly jerked away and put her hand in her pocket, looking at her girlfriend apologetically.

“We can never be sure who’s watching, even here” she said sadly.

The evening air was cold, and there were not many people out on the streets. The two walked on the sidewalk under the streetlights towards Taylor’s hotel. She had decided to leave for Rhode Island the same night, and she and Karlie had wanted to have some alone time away from all the chaos at Karlie’s parents’ house. Karlie had insisted they walk to the hotel, needing fresh air after having spent the majority of the day talking about Kimby’s experiences.

Karlie just hummed in response and tried her best not to feel hurt.

They walked the rest of the way in silence. Taylor’s security was waiting for her in the hotel lobby. It was not a big and fancy hotel as the ones the singer usually stayed in, but she felt safe there nevertheless, the hotel staff taking her security concerns very seriously. The day before she had taken pictures with the reception staff, and she was sure they would hang the pictures in the lobby for everyone to see.

“Next time we’re here together you will stay at our house” Karlie said after they had entered the room and plopped down on the couch.

The comment made Taylor’s heart flutter, and she pulled Karlie in close to her, holding the taller girl in her arms.

“I’m so happy Kimby is back and safe” she said quietly.

“Yeah, me too” Karlie murmured.

She loved that Taylor cared so much about her family.

They stayed like that for a while, just enjoying each other’s presence and the quiet of the room.

“When will we see each other again?” Karlie asked after a while.

“Soon” Taylor promised.

“Either you come to Rhode Island, or I will come to New York.”

Taylor gently rubbed Karlie’s arm.

“I really want to meet your friends. You’ve met mine already” she added after a moment.

“Really?” Karlie looked up at her girlfriend’s face excitedly.

“I’d love to introduce you. I haven’t told anyone besides Derek that you’re my girlfriend yet, but they’ll just have to deal with it” she giggled.

In reality, she wasn’t sure if Jourdan didn’t have her suspicions, just the way Derek had had.

Taylor laughed.

“Can’t wait to tell them” she replied.

“When are you going back?” she asked suddenly.

“Tomorrow. Kristine and I will both stay for tonight, to be there for the family” Karlie said.

“Yeah, I think that’s a good idea” Taylor said sincerely.

They smiled at each other, and Taylor gave Karlie a peck on the lips. She laughed when Karlie reached out to hold her face in place so she couldn’t pull away and started kissing her more. They deepened the kiss and before long found themselves in a heated make-out session.

“I already miss you” Karlie said between kisses.

Taylor looked into the taller girl’s green eyes before she replied.

“We won’t let as much time pass between seeing each other from now on” she said softly.

Going without Karlie for two weeks before her birthday had been longer than she wanted to admit. Even if they weren’t fighting and talked every day, she felt like she couldn’t be without Karlie for more than a week. She already dreaded her upcoming Australia tour, but put that thought aside for the moment.

They continued what they had started, making the most of their time together before Taylor would have to leave.


	30. Thirty

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The last chapter! This one got a bit longer because I didn't want to split it up and get an uneven number ... anyways, hope you enjoy reading!

“Come in!” Kimby shouted when she heard a knock on the door.

She and Kariann had arrived back at college earlier that day, having stayed with their parents for a night longer than originally planned because they still had to talk to the police.

The door opened very slowly and when Kimby turned towards it, she saw Kelley shyly standing in the doorframe. Usually, especially when Tobin was there as well, the lively girl would burst into the room without knocking and start talking animatedly. This time was different, but it didn’t surprise Kimby.

“Hey” Kimby said softly and smiled at her friend.

She had already seen Christen and a few of the others, but Kelley hadn’t shown up until now to welcome her back.

“Come in” she added and sat down on her bed, gesturing to her friend to sit down next to her.

Kelley closed the door behind her – another thing she usually did not do – and sat down next to Kimby. Without saying anything, she pulled her into a tight hug.

“I’m so glad you’re back” she whispered and Kimby could hear her voice cracking.

She knew that they would have to talk about what had happened, even if Kelley had not been directly involved. She had already prepared with Mrs Yanez on what to say to her friend.

Kimby reciprocated the hug and let her friend collect herself, not wanting to push the subject.

“I’m so sorry” Kelley started after a while, still not letting go of her friend.

“I just … my big mouth really got you in trouble, and I didn’t even realize it. My family always made fun of my uncle for … that. And I-“ she stopped.

Kimby rubbed her back, trying to sooth her.

“It’s not your fault” she said softly and separated from her to look at Kelley face.

Ever since she had put two and two together and figured that Mr O’Hara and Kelley were somehow related and she had not been kidnapped by coincidence, she had wondered what Kelley’s role was in all of this, but when she learned about the background of it all, she found that Kelley was not to blame. It was hard to convince her friend of that, however.

“I never thought he could do something like this. I know he was pressured and was against the boss’s methods, but still. He was involved in the group, that’s bad enough for me” Kelley continued.

“You didn’t know, Kelley. I’m not holding a grudge against you” Kimby said.

“Thank you” Kelley said sincerely.

“But I’m still blaming myself” she said sadly.

They looked at each other for a moment, until Kelley spoke up again.

“I don’t know if I should really be asking this and you don’t have to answer this, but … what was this all about? Do you … are you … I mean …” she tried to form her question, but failed and looked away from her friend.

Kimby sighed. She knew that this question was inevitable. The others hadn’t asked her yet, but she knew that this was the burning question on everyone’s minds. The question nobody dared to ask out loud, not even Kelley.

“I know what you think. But it’s … it’s not that easy. I know what it looks like. The group had something they considered evidence of me having some sort of magical powers, and so they targeted me. But it obviously didn’t go as they planned, and they made up their own evidences, and then your uncle revealed their location and the police found me. But I’m just a normal kid, I was just in the wrong place at the wrong time” Kimby said quietly and looked at Kelley to gauge her reaction after she had finished speaking.

Mrs Yanez had told her to be as vague as possible and to not give away any information that could reveal the existence of the CA. Kimby was a bad liar, and she hated to do it, but this was the one thing she had had to keep a secret all her life. It had just never been this hard to keep from her friends.

“I’m going to be honest with you, I don’t know what to think. We made fun of him, but my uncle is actually a very rational person, so I don’t understand why he was involved in the group in the first place. But I’m going to believe you. The group’s boss seems to be scary and hungry for power, and I don’t want to believe what he says. And I don’t want to think about this anymore” Kelley said and laughed sadly.

“Thank you, Kelley. It means a lot to me” Kimby replied, swallowing the lump in her throat.

Kelley hugged her friend once more.

“I promise to never make you walk home alone ever again” she said and squeezed Kimby.

Kimby laughed in response, desperate to move on from the topic and lighten the mood.

“Not even when Emily is there?” she joked.

“No” Kelley giggled.

“I will remind you of that” Kimby grinned at the freckled girl.

Kelley just stuck her tongue out in response. They talked for a while more, until Kariann and Christen knocked on the door and told them to come over to the lounge room. Kimby had already forgotten – today was Tobin’s first game with the national team, and the entire team as well as more friends and classmates were gathering around the TV in the lounge to watch.

When they arrived, there were already lots of the girls hanging out on the couches, the TV had been rearranged so that everyone would be able to see, and a mattress as well as blankets and pillows had been brought into the room to make it more comfortable. On the couch table there were bottles of soft drinks and bags of chips. Kimby loved how cozy it all looked. As soon as Kelley saw Emily sitting on the couch, she made a beeline for her, leaving behind a smirking Kimby and Kariann.

The twins joined their friends, Kariann sitting next to Megan, and Kimby between Christen and Kelley. Christen was beyond nervous and wouldn’t sit still. She had checked Twitter every few seconds until earlier, desperately waiting for the starting line-up to be released, even though everybody knew that Tobin wouldn’t be starting in her very first game. They just hoped she would get a few minutes - they were proud of her and excited no matter how many she would play.

The national anthem started playing and everybody yelped when Tobin appeared on the screen, standing between her teammates at the bench.

 _Wow. My roommate is on TV. No big deal_ , Kimby thought to herself.

Ok, well, she had been in the news in the last few days as well, but that didn’t count.

The match was the first one of the year, a friendly against Canada. The US was 0-1 down at halftime and it dampened the mood a little in the dorm’s lounge room, but it just made everyone hope that Tobin would play soon so she could prove herself as the game changer they knew her as. The twins texted their sister group chat, having told everyone to watch the game as well. Karlie texted back, saying she was watching too and hoped to see Tobin play in the second half.

When Tobin got subbed in in the 65th minute, her teammates and the twins cheered loudly, high-fiving each other and feeling excited for their friend.

“Go Tobin!” Kelley shouted and jumped up and down on the couch.

“She will be fine, Chris” Kimby laughed and nudged her friend’s shoulder, who was now staring at the TV even more anxiously. Christen just put her head in her hands in embarrassment. She couldn’t help her nervousness.

The game ended 1-1, and even though Tobin hadn’t scored or made the assist, they all agreed that she had played well nevertheless and were beyond proud of her. They couldn’t wait to congratulate her when she’d be back the next day. The group of friends hung out for a long while even after the game and interviews were finished, happy to be together after the week they all had had.

 

***

 

Kariann woke up from the commotion happening in her room. She was too tired to properly open her eyes yet, but she turned around and reached for her phone. It showed 6 am. She still had an hour to sleep.

"She woke up" she heard someone whisper.

She opened her eyes, even though every muscle in her body was urging her to just turn around and go back to sleep. In her room there were Tobin, Kimby and Christen, seemingly getting ready to leave.

"What the-?" Kariann started.

"Pssshh. We're just going to the court to play a pick-up game" Christen said towards her.

Kariann sat up in her bed.

"I'm just going with them. Should be fun" Kimby looked at her twin sister and grinned.

Kariann looked at them in surprise.

"It's the morning. It's cold. Why are you doing this" she said with a tired voice.

"So you don't wanna come?" Tobin asked, way too energized at this time of the day.

"I told you we should be quiet and let her sleep" Christen accused her teammate, sending Kariann an apologetic look.

Kariann groaned in response.

"I have a class at 8" she murmured.

"So do I!" Tobin grinned at her.

"Shouldn't you be taking it slowly after your training camp?" Kariann asked, trying to convince the others to go back to sleep as well, though fully knowing it was of no use.

"Ehh" Tobin just shrugged in response.

"I've been going easy at training all week. I'm fine" she added.

"Come on, we need to get going, the others are already waiting" Christen chimed in.

"Come with us! It will be fun!" Kimby tried to convince her sister one more time.

Kariann sighed.

"Ok. Fine. I can't go back to sleep now anyways" she gave in.

Tobin cheered in response.

Kariann quickly changed into sweat pants and a warm sweater, matching the others' attire.

"Ready to go!" Tobin announced and they made their way down the stairs, out of the dorm, and across campus towards the soccer field. It was only a short walk away.

The flood lights were on, and Kariann didn't ask how the other players knew how to operate them. Kelley, Megan and a few other teammates were already there, kicking balls around and having a good time. Kariann felt glad she had come with her sister and friends, appreciating the peaceful sight.

She was freezing, however, and wrapped her scarf tighter around her neck.

"Let's move!" Christen shouted at her and kicked a ball in her direction.

They lined up with the others and kept kicking the ball back and forth.

"It's fun, isn't it?" Christen asked after a while.

Kariann nodded.

"Yeah. I feel so energized right now" she smiled.

"Ok everyone! Game time! Let's pick teams!" Kelley chimed in, her loud voice talking over the others. Out here they didn't have to worry about being a nuisance towards others, especially not this early in the morning.

Kimby and Kariann were allowed to pick teams, as the honorary members of the team.

They played five against five, having set up cones as goal posts in the middle of the field. There was still dew on the grass, and it was clearly visible where the girls had moved around the most. The twins obviously did not possess the same skills in soccer as their friends, but they played lightly and just for fun, everyone making sure the twins could keep up. The exercise and cold morning air made everyone feel energized on this Friday morning.

"Ok, short water break, then just a few more minutes. I need a hot shower!" Megan announced after a while.

Someone had brought large bottles of water that they passed around.

They started playing again. Tobin seemed to have lots of energy left and played more roughly than before, which earned her a warning from Christen.

"Take it easy, Tobs. We don't want any injuries, coach would be so mad."

Nevertheless, the girl performed a side tackle on Kimby a few moments later. Kimby could see herself going down even before Tobin made contact with her ankle, missing the ball by an inch. However, she did nothing about it despite being able to hear Kariann silently yelling at her. Kimby yelped when she landed on the cold grass and could feel her ankle being twisted. Tobin had been sliding and standing up again next to her but quickly bent down to her roommate when she saw what had happened.

"Kimby! Shit, I'm sorry! Are you ok?" She asked frantically.

The others came rushing towards them.

"What did I tell you?" Christen asked angrily.

"She's not experienced enough with the ball to know how to move in a situation like that!"

"I think I hurt my ankle" Kimby said, pain evident on her face.

Kelley reached out to her to help her up, but the blonde girl couldn't put her foot down.

 _Why didn't you do anything? Didn't you see it coming?_ Kariann asked her twin silently.

 _I did. But it would have been too obvious. Everyone is here._ Kimby replied.

"I'm so sorry, Kimby! Wait, I'm taking you to the ER right now. I need to get my car keys from our room" Tobin said hastily and started sprinting back towards the dorm.

Christen looked after her in disbelief.

"She's so reckless. I'm so sorry, Kimby" she said towards the injured girl.

Kimby just shrugged.

"Yeah, but it happens. It hurts, but I don't think I broke a bone" she replied.

"Still …" Christen trailed off.

 _I didn't want to draw attention any further_ , Kimby communicated to Kariann.

_Remember what we were told about letting small accidents happen?_

Kariann grinned at her twin.

_Yeah, you're right. After everything, now would be a good time to start._

"Let's take you to the gate and wait for Tobin. You're right, it's probably not a bad injury" she said out loud towards her twin and Christen.

None of the twins had ever been injured like that before, always having used their skills to prevent such accidents. However, after all that had happened, they felt like not drawing attention towards themselves was the best thing to do.

 

***

 

The winter was still keeping its hold on New York City. The air was cold and the trees were bald, but the sky was blue and the sun was shining.

Taylor had arrived at Karlie's apartment earlier in the day, planning on staying for the weekend. The two were drinking tea on the couch, wrapped in blankets and catching up.

"Kimby twisted her ankle during soccer yesterday" Karlie giggled.

Taylor looked at her shocked.

"What? Since when does she play soccer? Is she ok?"

"Yeah, she won't be able to walk properly for like a week, but she can put her foot down again. Apparently, they played with the team in the morning before classes" Karlie explained.

"Oh man. She has a lot going on right now, hasn't she" Taylor giggled, relieved that the injury was not that bad.

"Yeah" Karlie agreed.

"I asked if she didn't see it coming, but she said she took Mrs Yanez' advice and wants to let small accidents happen" she added.

Taylor snorted in response.

"That was my reaction too" Karlie giggled again.

"Kimby who even stops a spilt glass of water in mid-air twists her ankle because she is following the rules … I guess she does learn" she grinned.

Taylor grinned back at her.

"I'm gonna text her get well soon" she said, reaching for her phone.

"She doesn't freak out about me anymore, right?" she asked jokingly.

Karlie laughed.

"No, I think she got used to you by now" she assured the singer.

Taylor sent a quick text to the injured girl.

"When are the others coming over?" she asked after she sent the text, referring to Karlie's friends.

"Around 6" Karlie replied.

"It's just Cara and Jourdan though. Derek can't make it, he texted me earlier" she added.

"Oh no, that's too bad!" Taylor said, genuinely disappointed.

"I was looking forward to meeting him."

"Yeah, he's sad about it too. But we can arrange another hang-out soon" Karlie assured her.

"Yeah, I'd love that" Taylor said and smiled.

“Are you nervous?” Karlie asked, half-teasing and half-serious.

“I … yeah” Taylor admitted.

“Don’t laugh.”

Karlie scooted over and hugged the singer tightly.

“Sorry, I wasn’t making fun of you. I was nervous before your birthday party as well” she reassured her.

“I haven’t given them a heads-up about the fact that you’re my girlfriend yet, though” she added and laughed.

Taylor groaned.

“Should we act as friends?” she asked, but that questions only earned her a grim look from Karlie.

“Ok, ok” she laughed.

“Then we’ll just throw them in at the deep end” she grinned, and Karlie grinned back at her.

“Can’t wait to see their reactions” the taller girl giggled.

They talked about what they'd make for dinner for a while, and Taylor made sure she knew the essential information about Karlie's friends, not wanting to get them mixed up or forget and embarrass herself.

"Oh" Taylor suddenly spoke up, remembering what she had wanted to talk about.

"You heard about the trial, right?" she asked Karlie.

"About the group that kidnapped Kimby? Yeah. Mom said they're gonna face jail time, except for Kimby's friend's uncle because he was peer pressured and gave the hint to the police, but he's gonna get a monetary fine or social work or something" Karlie said and took a sip of her tea.

"Kimby said she talked to her friend and that they're good" she added.

"That's good. I do get why she doesn't want anything to do with her conjuring skills for a while now" Taylor replied seriously.

"Yeah. Did Tree say anything about the rumors that you were in St Louis last week?" Karlie asked.

"Yeah, but there were no pictures or anything, so it wasn't a big deal. You should probably meet her in person sometime soon though, she wants to talk to you about … well … me, us, how to act in public and everything" Taylor said.

Karlie made a grimace.

"Really?"

"Yeah … sorry" Taylor said sheepishly.

"Hmm … ok" Karlie said, not wanting to talk about it at the moment.

Taylor reached for her hand and squeezed it apologetically. She hated that everything in her life had to be so complicated and well-planned. A relationship was never just a relationship. She could never just _be_. But now that she and Karlie had been together for a while, a meeting with her publicist was due. She didn't want to lose Karlie because of a silly, avoidable mistake.

Karlie smiled weakly at her girlfriend.

“Let’s talk about it when the time actually comes” she suggested, and Taylor nodded in response.

The singer squeezed Karlie’s hand again, then gently pulled her towards herself. Karlie grinned at the gesture and let herself be pulled closer, readjusting so that she was straddling Taylor’s lap. She smiled at Taylor when their faces were only inches apart, and Taylor quickly closed the distance between them.

They kept exchanging kisses, going from soft and slow to more passionate as the minutes passed. Taylor’s hands had made their way under Karlie’s sweatshirt and were stroking her back, causing the taller girl to lean into Taylor’s body more, craving contact. When Taylor started to go ahead and take the sweater off, Karlie broke the kiss and giggled.

“It’s cold” she jokingly complained.

Taylor laughed.

“I’ll keep you warm” she said and winked, causing Karlie to roll her eyes at the cheesy phrase.

She reconnected their lips, not able to be without her girlfriend’s sweet kisses for long.

“We have all the time in the world” Taylor whispered between kisses, and Karlie smiled at her contently.

 

***

 

At exactly 6 PM, there was a knock on Karlie’s door. She knew it had to be Jourdan, given the fact that her friend had an extremely short way.

They greeted and hugged each other, and then Karlie introduced her neighbor to Taylor.

“Jourdan, this is Taylor. Taylor, this is Jourdan.”

“It’s good to finally meet you” Taylor stated and smiled, and Jourdan returned the sentiment.

“She never shuts up about you” Jourdan joked.

Karlie blushed. She had no idea how to bring up this other important detail about her and Taylor.

Taylor smiled again.

“She mentions you a lot, too” she said.

“No, I mean like, she never. Shuts. Up. About. You. I honestly feel like I’ve known you for years” Jourdan laughed and smirked when she saw Karlie blushing even more.

She almost had her where she wanted her friend to be.

Taylor blushed too a little, but mostly found her girlfriend’s neighbor hilarious.

“Oh, really?” she joked.

“I wonder why that could be?”

Taylor and Jourdan grinned at each other, both knowing about the big elephant in the room. And also enjoying Karlie’s visible embarrassment.

“Guys … please …” Karlie started.

“Aww, you’re so cute when you’re embarrassed” Taylor cooed and kissed Karlie, but immediately turned to Jourdan to see her reaction.

“Ha! I knew it!” the dark-skinned girl triumphed.

“Karlie, you’re so terrible at hiding things from me …” she grinned.

“Derek totally owes me ten bucks.”

“What? Why?” Karlie asked in surprise.

“A while ago I asked him if he knew if you and Taylor were a couple and he said no” Jourdan explained.

Both Karlie and Taylor burst out laughing. Karlie was clutching her stomach.

“Oh my god, Jourdan …” she got out.

“What?” Jourdan asked, confused by their reaction.

“He knew” Taylor laughed.

Jourdan’s eyes went wide.

“What? That absolute-“ she started, but then couldn’t help but laugh as well.

“He was just being a good friend and keeping a secret” Karlie explained, still laughing.

“Oh man. He’s not getting those ten dollars from me now” Jourdan said.

Taylor giggled.

“But seriously, I’m so happy for you two. I can see that you’re making each other happy” she said genuinely.

Karlie and Taylor smiled at her, and Taylor squeezed Karlie’s hand.

“Thank you for saying that” Taylor said.

“Does Cara know, though?” Jourdan asked after a moment.

“No” Karlie answered.

“Hmm …” Jourdan thought out loud.

Taylor smirked.

“Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” she joked.

“I think so” Jourdan said.

“You two … what have I done …” Karlie said, shaking her head.

They went into the kitchen, each getting something to drink and then sat down at the small kitchen table. Taylor and Jourdan were indeed hitting it off well, asking each other about their lives and talking animatedly. Karlie felt grateful for it.

A while later the doorbell rang and Karlie went to answer the intercom. Before long Cara burst into the apartment, hugging Karlie and calling out for Jourdan.

“She has arrived” Jourdan said dramatically towards Taylor, causing the singer to giggle.

She got up to greet her friend. Taylor trailed along behind her, laughing at the two British girls’ demeanor.

When Cara noticed Taylor, she immediately let go of Jourdan and turned towards the singer with her hand outstretched.

“Hi, I’m Cara. Um, nice to meet you. I really like your music. Umm …”

It was strange to see the out-going girl so flustered. Taylor laughed and shook her hand.

“Hi Cara. I’m Taylor. It’s good to meet you too” she said genuinely.

Cara still seemed star-struck by Taylor’s presence.

“Alright, Cara, did you bring what I asked you to buy?” Karlie asked to not let any awkward silence ensue.

“Yep” the brunette replied, grabbing her bag and taking it into the kitchen. The others followed her.

“What are we making?” Jourdan asked.

“Veggie curry” Cara replied, pulling the groceries out of her bag.

“Sounds good.”

“I’m hungry, can we start immediately?” Karlie asked, and everyone agreed.

Jourdan smirked at Taylor when Cara wasn’t looking, the singer knowing exactly what she meant. She couldn’t wait to see Cara’s reaction when she found out. Until then, the other three would have their fun.

They assigned tasks to each other and started preparing the meal, the kitchen having exceeded its capacity with all of them in it. Therefore, Cara decided to let the others do the work and instead opted to sit on a chair and watch them.

“How’s Alex?” Karlie asked her after a while.

“She’s good. She says everyone is friendly and she’s getting around ok” Cara replied.

“Alex is my girlfriend. She’s studying abroad in France this semester” she added towards Taylor, who just nodded in response. The singer already knew that from Karlie.

They talked about the countries they wanted to visit someday, and Taylor explained to Karlie’s friends’ surprise that travelling abroad while touring was not as great as it sounded for a good portion of the time and that she never had the chance to actually get to know the country and its people. It was something she wished she could do.

“I’m sad you didn’t win the Grammy” Cara said unexpectedly.

Taylor winced. Karlie sent her friend a death stare, but the British girl didn’t seem to notice.

“You really deserved it” she continued.

“Thank you” Taylor said quietly, not wanting to talk about the topic.

Jourdan could feel the tension in the room, Karlie having explained the loss to her, and decided to quietly keep stirring the pot.

In truth, Taylor hadn’t thought about it all that much anymore. With Kimby’s disappearance she had had other things on her mind. Besides, she had already decided on a title for her next album and started writing songs again and putting fragments of lyrics together. She hadn’t told Karlie yet, as a lot of the new songs would be about her, and she didn’t know how to approach the subject.

Luckily, Cara let go of the topic and started talking about something else.

When the curry was done, they took two chairs into the big room next to the couch table where they wanted to eat. Taylor and Karlie sat down on the couch and the two British girls on the chairs opposite to them.

“Ok, this is really good” Jourdan announced after she had tried the food.

The others agreed. They talked about this and that, and it seemed like Cara had slowly gotten used to Taylor’s presence. To everyone else’s surprise, she hadn’t asked about Taylor and Karlie’s relationship status once so far.

Jourdan then decided to take matters into her own hands.

"So, Taylor, how's Meredith doing?" she asked the singer, trying to change the topic to what she wanted.

Taylor was confused at the question first but detected a hint of smugness in Jourdan's voice and had a feeling where the girl was going with this.

"Oh, she's doing well. Eating, sleeping, scowling at me. You know, the usual" she grinned.

"Karlie said she likes her more than you" Jourdan replied and smirked.

Karlie looked between her girlfriend and her neighbor, not sure why the conversation had suddenly turned that way. Cara looked surprised.

"Really, Karlie? I thought she didn't like people" she said astounded.

"Well, Karlie is special, and Meredith knows that" Taylor grinned.

Karlie blushed in response and suddenly understood what was going on. Cara narrowed her eyes trying to detect any hints of a joke in Taylor's words.

"Can we see a picture? One you didn't post on Instagram?" Jourdan asked.

Karlie raised an eyebrow at the question, but Taylor grabbed her phone. All she had to do to find a picture of Karlie and her cat was unlock the screen, and she proudly showed it towards the two British girls.

Jourdan smirked contently, but Cara's eyes went wide.

"Wait … why is … I mean it's a cute picture … but why is Karlie your background photo?" she asked.

The other three burst out laughing.

"Oh my god, Cara, I can't believe you haven't figured it out yet" Jourdan giggled.

Karlie blushed again and looked down at her lap, but Taylor grinned at the other two.

"Why? What's going on? I would never … oh!" Cara suddenly seemed to understand.

She looked between Taylor and Karlie.

"Are you two … but I didn't know Taylor was … oh my god."

The others giggled at their friend's reaction.

Karlie's heart was beating out of her chest. She didn't like being the center of attention, not even between her closest friends. She and Cara hadn't been as close in the past months as usual and she feared her friend would resent her for not telling her.

"How long?" Cara finally asked.

Karlie wasn't sure if the girl was hurt or annoyed, she couldn't be sure of her tone of voice.

"October" she replied quietly.

"Oh" Cara said.

"When did you know?" she asked towards Jourdan.

"Around 6:03 PM today" the other girl grinned.

"But if you're asking when I knew-knew, it was way before."

"Oh" Cara repeated.

"And Derek?"

"He figured it out, too, so I just confirmed it to him, after the paparazzi thing happened" Karlie explained, her voice still small.

Taylor squeezed her hand reassuringly.

Cara just hummed in response and looked lost in thought for a moment. Then she looked at Karlie and Taylor.

"I'm sorry, I'm making this seem like I'm not happy for you two. I really am. I'm just angry with myself because I was so occupied with my own stuff that this went completely over my head" she explained.

Taylor nodded.

"Yeah" Karlie just said, not knowing what else to do.

"I'm so happy for you. I never would have guessed this. This is so awesome" Cara said more cheerfully, causing the others to smile.

"So, can I ask, is that why you broke up with your boyfriend?" she asked towards Taylor.

Jourdan and Karlie snorted, and this time it was Taylor who blushed.

"Oh my god. No. He was never my boyfriend" she chuckled.

"Oh …" Cara said, understanding washing over her face.

"Karlie is way hotter anyways" she chuckled.

"Agreed" Taylor grinned.

Karlie put her head in her hands in embarrassment.

They kept talking about Taylor's and Karlie's relationship in the past few months, both of them feeling a weight lifted off their chests for finally being able to tell Karlie's friends. Karlie did not hold a grudge against Cara, but she knew that they would still have lots to talk about just the two of them.

Both her friends also asked about Kimby's well-being, Karlie chuckling when she told them her sister had twisted her ankle, but luckily didn't ask more about the circumstances of her kidnapping. They were just glad she was safe, not minding her injury.

The four young women enjoyed the rest of their night, drinking and chatting and laughing. It was as if Taylor had always been a part of their group. Karlie's friends left late, and when they did Taylor and Karlie decided to clean up the rest in the morning and went to sleep immediately. The last thought Karlie had before drifting off to sleep was how lucky she was to have her friends and to be able to sleep in Taylor's arms.

 

***

 

Taylor woke up from the smell of coffee and pancakes. She opened her eyes and found that Karlie wasn't next to her anymore, but she could hear the taller girl being busy in the kitchen. She got out of bed, pulled a sweater over the t-shirt she slept in and went into the next room. Karlie turned around and smiled at her.

"Good Morning!" she said happily and gave Taylor a quick peck on the lips.

Then she looked her up and down and laughed.

"Hey, I'm pretty sure that's mine" she said referring to the beige sweater with the word 'Genius' written on it in bold black letters. It was one of her favorites - she did not actually mind Taylor wearing it.

"Morning" Taylor just mumbled and wrapped her arms around Karlie's torso, ignoring her previous statement.

"You're soft and warm" she added sleepily, trying to hold her in place when Karlie tried to move.

"I made breakfast, Tay" Karlie laughed and playfully shoved her girlfriend away.

She pulled out a chair for her and gestured for her to sit down.

"Blueberry pancakes? You're the best girlfriend ever!" Taylor exclaimed when Karlie put the plate on the table.

Karlie grinned and sat down opposite to Taylor and took a sip of coffee.

"Did you sleep well?" She asked softly.

"Yeah" Taylor said.

"You?" she asked and dug into her pancakes.

"Yeah, but I can never sleep as much as you" Karlie replied laughing.

"These pancakes are so good, Karlie!" Taylor said with her mouth full, once again ignoring her girlfriend's statement.

"Thank you" Karlie said and started eating as well.

Suddenly Taylor's eyes went wide and she looked around the room.

"Wait, did you clean everything up already? I was gonna help!"

"It's alright. I didn't want to wait until you woke up" Karlie shrugged.

"I'll do the dishes for the rest of the day then" Taylor offered.

"Ok" Karlie grinned.

"But please don't feel like you're in my debt now or anything" she added.

"I like doing things for you."

Taylor smiled softly.

"Thank you" she said, almost shyly.

They ate in silence for a while, and Taylor internally debated how to best bring up the topic she was both desperate to talk about to Karlie and anxious at the same time.

She took another sip of coffee, then stared at Karlie. She loved the tall girl's natural beauty, the way she was sitting there in her pajamas, her hair disheveled.

"What?" Karlie smirked when she caught Taylor's gaze.

Taylor gulped.

"Um … "

"What is it?" Karlie asked concerned.

"Oh, it's nothing bad … I was just thinking …" Taylor started.

"Yeah?"

"What would you say if I moved to New York?"

Karlie's eyes went wide and she put her fork down, then looked at Taylor.

"Oh. I mean. I would be very happy. You're thinking about moving?" she asked.

"Yeah. I mean I would still keep my houses in LA and Rhode Island" Taylor started explaining.

"But I can imagine moving here so I can be closer to you. And, uh, I always have a lot of appointments in NYC anyways, so …" she trailed off.

Karlie didn't know how to respond.

"Of course I would be happy if you moved here. But I also don't want you to feel like you have to or anything" she said and fiddled with the cutlery on her plate.

She took another sip of coffee and anxiously awaited Taylor's reaction.

"No, Karlie, don't think that. I'm moving because I want to. I brought it up, remember? I love New York, and I also want to be closer to you" the singer explained calmly.

"Ok" Karlie simply answered and smiled.

"Did you look at houses yet?" she asked.

"Maybe …" Taylor said and grinned.

"Really?" Karlie exclaimed.

"I want to help going house-hunting!"

"There may be an apartment in Tribeca that I'm interested in … I can show you pictures later" Taylor smiled.

"Awesome!" Karlie said happily.

They kept eating.

Taylor then looked down at her now empty plate, trying to gather the courage to say what else was on her mind.

"What's up, Tay?" Karlie said softly.

Of course, she could sense Taylor's nervousness. She could never hide her emotions from her.

"I'm writing a new album" the singer blurted out.

Karlie's eyes went wide for the second time during the last few minutes.

"That's amazing, Taylor!" she exclaimed.

"Thank you" Taylor smiled, yet not still fully back to feeling calm.

"It already has a title, and I want to go to the studio soon. I have a few voice memos on my phone."

Karlie smiled.

"That's great" she said sincerely.

"So … some of the new songs are … about you …" Taylor started carefully.

To her surprise, Karlie did not seem shocked by this new information.

"I feel very honored" she replied, remembering her conversation with Derek a while ago.

"I don't mind it, Tay. You can write about me, the good and the bad" she added.

Taylor let out the breath she had been holding. This was usually always a point of contention between herself and the person she dated.

"Thank you" she said genuinely.

"You'll be the first to hear it" she promised.

"I can't wait" Karlie said softly and reached over the table to squeeze Taylor's hand.

They smiled at each other, and Taylor couldn't help but blush slightly.

In that moment she felt positive that they could handle whatever this crazy world would throw at them. She knew that she wanted Karlie in her future and she was aware of all the trouble it would bring. She had two secrets to keep, and ever since Karlie and her twin sisters had stumbled into her life, it had proven to be more difficult than she had ever thought. However, she also knew that they now had people to share their secrets with and to rely on.

She made a promise to herself to not let anything get in between herself and Karlie, no matter how many secrets she would have to keep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! I always appreciate feedback so let me know how you liked the story!!  
> The sequel is on its way ... I won't give away too much but I will give you two facts: 1. it's set during the 1989 era, 2. it's called 'Promises'.  
> I will make an announcement when I post it!
> 
> And lastly, here is a list of characters based on real-life people.  
> Their words, thoughts and actions in this story are purely fictional and are not meant to imply any real-life resemblance. The other characters are original characters, any resemblance towards real-life people is purely coincidental and unintentional.
> 
> Taylor Swift, Andrea Swift, Scott Swift, Austin Swift  
> Karlie Kloss, Kimby Kloss, Kariann Kloss, Kristine Kloss, Tracy Kloss, Kurt Kloss  
> Cara Delevingne, Derek Blasberg, Jourdan Dunn, Joan Smalls  
> Selena Gomez, Abigail Anderson, Tree Paine  
> Beverly Yanez, Nahomi Kawasumi, Kelley O’Hara, Christen Press, Tobin Heath, Megan Rapinoe, Jewell Loyd, Alex Morgan, Sue Bird, Emily Sonnett


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